Alonso hails Aston Martin for its strategic decision
Having finished the Austrian Grand Prix in an impressive seventh place, two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso has praised Aston Martin for having pursued an ambitious one-stop strategy at the Red Bull Ring.
Fernando Alonso did not look particularly strong at the start of the Austrian Grand Prix weekend. However, he managed to raise his performance for qualifying to secure P11 on the grid.
The two-time world champion started on the mediums and extended his opening stint. He then swapped to the hards, and spent the majority of the race behind the Racing Bulls of Liam Lawson.
The Spaniard had to absorb heavy pressure late on from Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto. Although the Brazilian managed to overtake him, Alonso fought back to regain the place straight back. The Aston Martin driver showed some very clever racing, and managed to capitalize on the blue flags on the last lap.
Reflecting on his race, Alonso noted: "After starting P11, I'm really happy to finish P7 today in Austria. Our one-stop strategy worked really well. I was unsure about it this morning because of the heat, but it paid off and the team made the right decision.
"I was able to use DRS throughout the race and I was a bit lucky in the final laps - one more lap would have been too much. It's great to end a tough weekend on a high, and the team's hunger is clear to see. Let’s carry this momentum into Silverstone next week."
Explaining his battle with Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto, the 32-time grand prix winner reckoned that he could only defend his position because of the blue flags on the last lap of the race.
"And then at the end, Gabriel was a lot faster. I thought, honestly, I could not defend, but luckily enough, Lando [Norris] came just at the right moment, blue flags.
"And because Lando overtook us, the next lap was the chequered flag, because we got lapped. So, it was a perfect combination - and a lucky race to finish P7, to be honest.
"I didn't want to pass Lando, but I could not stay just behind Lando, because then Gabriel would pass me, so I had to try different moves to confuse Gabriel a little bit about what I was doing and at what point."
