Mike Krack believes an issue on Fernando Alonso’s car picked up on Lap 2 and an uncharacteristically slow pitstop ruined Aston Martin’s Singapore Grand Prix.
Alonso struggled to keep up with the leaders in Singapore as he struggled with a wounded car before picking up a 5-second penalty for crossing the white line on pit entry.
A botched pitstop followed, and after a trip down an escape road, Alonso limped home a distant 15th, picking up his first non-scoring finish of 2023.
“When we look back, the Friday was quite good,” Krack told media at the Japanese GP. “In terms of long-run pace. I think we did quite a good job there.
“In qualifying. We were in the mix as we expected, behind the Ferraris that were really quick. I think it was as it was tight all the time. But then came the race with only one car.
“We had an issue on Fernando’s car from Lap 2 onwards, and this made us really move backwards in the race. We had a penalty, a pitstop that was one of the worst [of] all time.
“All in all, everything came together and was disappointing, obviously, but we have an explanation for it. So there’s nothing to be scared for the future from that.”
Stroll rested after horror shunt
On the other side of the Aston Martin garage, Lance Stroll’s weekend ended abruptly after a Q1 shunt at the final corner, coating the track with debris and destroying the Canadian’s car.
The damage was deemed unrepairable in time for lights out, and Stroll was subsequently withdrawn from the race but declared fit for the Japanese GP.
Stroll had a steady start to his Japanese GP weekend, finishing the morning session 10th fastest and the afternoon session 11th quickest.
“Lance is fine, he had some rest this week,” explained Krack. “He came yesterday [and] was quite confident physically and mentally [he’s] all good.
“This morning, after FP1, all went well. So I think [it] was a good decision to give him some rest last week, and we’re looking forward now for Suzuka.”
