Fernando Alonso confirmed the upgrades Aston Martin brought to their AMR23 at Zandvoort are working properly following his Friday running.
Aston Martin brought a new floor body, floor edge, floor fences, as well as a new diffuser to their AMR23, as they bid to restore the strong form they have enjoyed since the start of the season, before being overtaken by the likes of McLaren, Mercedes, and Ferrari.
Alonso, who has secured six podiums so far in the 2023 Formula 1 season, scoring points in every weekend, feels the upgrades Aston Martin brought are working well, but lamented a shortened program due to Red flags in FP1, a session he finished second fastest.
The Spaniard however, was tenth fastest in FP2, he said: “The upgrades to the AMR23 feel good, although we didn’t complete the programme that we were hoping to – there were a couple of red flags.
“There was nothing too dramatic on my side and we got good information on Friday, but we still need to analyse everything and put everything together for tomorrow,” he concluded.
Matters were more tricky in the other side of the Aston Martin garage, as Lance Stroll didn’t even run in the first practice session after an issue with his power unit.
The Canadian, who missed media duties on Thursday due to illness, did finally get a taste of the upgraded AMR23 at Zandvoort and finished eighth fastest.
“I feel okay after the opening day of practice,” he said in Aston Martin‘s Friday report. “We had limited running in FP1 because of the power unit issue, which is a shame as Zandvoort is a great track and a lot of fun, but the issue was quickly resolved by the team so I could return for the second session.
“We have to look into the data overnight to evaluate the upgrades and come back tomorrow to continue our programme,” Stroll concluded.
Aston Martin are currently third in the F1 Constructors’ Standings, 51 points behind second-placed Mercedes.