Fernando Alonso will be looking to get back on the podium in Miami, but despite his first row start, the Aston Martin driver admits the podium will be difficult to achieve.
Fernando Alonso was on the podium in the first three races of the 2023 Formula 1 season, but failed to do so in Baku last week, and after qualifying second in Miami on Saturday, a fourth podium for the Aston Martin driver is on the cards.
Alonso and Aston Martin did not seem to be in a good place in Miami, that is before qualifying, as in FP3, the Spaniard was only 12th fastest, but seemed to improve in Qualifying as he was featuring in the sharp end of the standings throughout the three-stage shootout.
In the end, P2 wouldn’t have been achievable for Alonso in qualifying had Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc got their acts together, but he kept the #14 Aston Martin on the track unlike them and his reward was a front row start alongside Sergio Perez.
After qualifying, Alonso said: “I think FP3 was a bit messy for us, we tried different set ups and it didn’t work. But the team put the car on a more known place after the first four races and the car came alive in qualifying,
Aston Martin have a decent race car for Sunday
“It was a very good qualifying session,” he added in Aston Martin’s press release. “Things have been a bit up and down for the last few events – Baku was very difficult – but, over a regular weekend format, we’ve been able to experiment with a few different options on the car.
“We put it all together for qualifying – the car felt good. And there was still a lot more pace in the car because my Q3 lap was done on used Softs. On my second run, on fresh rubber, I was already a few tenths up – but then the yellow flags came out,” the double Formula 1 Champion lamented.
“The result gives us a lot of confidence for tomorrow – Sunday is usually our day; we take care of the tyres and have good race pace. Plus, starting further up the grid always makes things a little easier. Getting on the podium will still be difficult but we’ll just do our race – it’s going to be tough but we’ll enjoy it,” Alonso maintained.
Alonso’s starting position in Miami might be his best chance to get his first F1 win since 2013 when he won his the Spanish Grand Prix. It will be Aston Martin’s first win ever.
But with a hard-charging Verstappen, and Leclerc looking to make amends after his clumsy qualifying crash, will Alonso spend the race looking over his shoulder?