Fernando Alonso secured a commendable fifth-place finish for Aston Martin at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix last week. After the race, the Spaniard noted that his team demonstrated improvement since the opening race in Bahrain. Despite losing one place at the start, Alonso remained competitive throughout the race, pressuring his rivals and ultimately finishing fifth. “The pace was better than Bahrain,“ he said, reflecting on the race. But was the 5th place a deserved position for Aston Martin? According to former Spanish F1 legend, Luis Perez Sala, it wasn’t.

Alonso was happy after a comfortable 5th place finish four seconds ahead of the Mercedes of George Russell. However, the 2-time world champion stressed the need to enhance race pace, citing his ability to challenge McLaren and Mercedes during the event. He was also aware of the strategic advantage gained during the Safety Car pit stop that came on lap 7 after his teammate Lance Stroll crashed out of the race.

Perez Sala hopes Aston Martin can keep up in the development race this season

The pit stop advantage gained during the Safety Car period wasn’t the only thing in Fernando Alonso’s favor at Jeddah. The second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz, which was being piloted by debutant Oliver Bearman, was also a big reason Fernando managed a 5th-place finish. Had the fellow Spaniard taken part in the race, Ferrari could have scored a comfortable 3-4 finish, pushing Alonso down the order.

During a recent conversation with Diario AS, Perez Sala was asked if the Silverstone-based team finished above their current potential. “Aston Martin is not the third-best car right now,“ said Sala. “But there is the merit of the driver. It has been another great performance by Alonso because his car is the fifth on the grid. Carlos’ absence has also benefited him.”

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“Hopefully they will be right with the evolution in Aston Martin because now they are all very equal and the one who takes a more accurate step than the others will have a lot of ground gained,” he added. He also speculated about Alonso’s future in Formula 1, suggesting that the Spaniard could easily end up in Red Bull Racing if the internal conflict within the Milton Keynes squad forces Max Verstappen to quit the team.

During the Saudi Arabian GP, Alonso was asking the team about a possible alternate strategy over the team radio. Mike Krack has now revealed that it was just a bit of teasing from the double world champion.

Mike Krack suggests Fernando Alonso was playing mind games at Jeddah

Alonso raised some eyebrows during the Saudi Arabian GP when he seemingly hinted at a different strategy after the first rounds of pit stops during the Safety Car period. Alonso, who qualified fourth and finished fifth in the race, was keen on exploring alternate strategies to gain an advantage on the track. Despite his impressive performance, Alonso’s request for a “Plan B“ strategy left some wondering if he was genuinely considering a strategic change or just playing mind games with his competitors.

Team boss Mike Krack recently shed light on what was going on in Alonso’s mind during that moment. Krack noted that the Spanish driver is known for his strategic acumen and occasional misdirection. Krack explained, “Fernando is always teasing you – and you have to be careful if he is being honest about it. Because he knows all the strategies, he knows where all the field is, and sometimes he maybe even does it on purpose because he knows the competitors are listening.”

Aston Martin has quite a few areas of improvement with their 2024 challenger. Will the team be able to get on top of the issues and once again give Alonso a car he can fight for podiums with?

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