Alonso conceded that the "pace wasn't there" despite upgrade package
On the back of a disappointing weekend in Belgium, Aston Martin's two-time world champion Fernando Alonso conceded that the Silverstone-based outfit struggled for pace despite an upgrade package.
Having ended up P19 and P20 in the standard qualifying session, the Spa race always looked a tough ask for Aston Martin in terms of scoring.
Although the Silvestone-based outfit called their drivers early into the pits to pursue an aggressive strategy when the track was dry enough for slick tyres, neither Alonso nor Stroll were able to make big strides forward.
Reflecting on his tough weekend in Belgium, the two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso said thatthe race conditions worked against Aston Martin as the Silverstone-based outfit was committed to a wet set-up.
"Unfortunately, things haven't gone our way this weekend in Belgium. We committed to a wet set-up, but the race ended up being mostly dry and sunny.
"We managed to make up a few places to finish P17, but our pace still wasn't there. We brought a new package to the circuit, but it hasn't delivered the improvements we were hoping for. We will now go back and look at the data to try and find some performance in Hungary."
His team-mate Lance Stroll commented: "It's been a tough weekend for us. We did what we could and it was probably the most we could achieve today.
"We made all the right strategy calls during the race but ultimately we want to finish in the points. I'm now looking forward to Budapest in a week's time, it's a very different track and hopefully there will be more opportunities for us."
Speaking of the British outfit's weekend, team boss Andy Cowell said: "The Belgian Grand Prix comes to a close after a challenging weekend. We opted to split strategies between the two cars. Lance ran a one-stop race, managing his tyres well to make up six places and finish in P14.
"With Fernando, we opted for a two-stop approach, knowing we had little to lose. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off as we'd hoped. We were planning on a wet race, but the long delay in restarting meant it dried out very quickly, and we were also banking on greater tyre degradation from cars around us.
"Despite the outcome, this weekend has provided valuable learning. We're now focused on the Hungarian Grand Prix next weekend, the final race before the summer break."
