The British Grand Prix witnessed Fernando Alonso expressing his discontent with Aston Martin’s choice to deviate from the strategy employed for his teammate, Lance Stroll.
The two-time F1 champion, Alonso, experienced a drop of two positions, ultimately securing ninth place at Silverstone. Meanwhile, Stroll demonstrated a significant climb from 17th to seventh amidst the fluctuating weather conditions.
Stroll even momentarily held the third position, capitalizing on two impeccably timed pit stops conducted early in the race. His initial pit stop occurred under virtual safety car conditions on lap six, propelling him into the top 10 with his soft tires, effectively competing against rivals on intermediate tires. He then executed a second pit stop for green-striped tires on lap 10 as rain made a comeback.
This strategic move facilitated his ascent into podium contention, as certain drivers on older intermediate tires faced delays in their pit stops, including Alonso on lap 11 – a decision that relegated him from sixth to 10th.
Alonso’s subsequent pit stop transpired on lap 37, marking him as the first driver to transition to slick tires in the latter stages. However, this maneuver proved premature, as the majority of the field, including Stroll, refrained from pitting again until laps 41-44 out of a total of 52 laps.
“It was a particularly challenging race to execute, and from our perspective, it ultimately represented a missed opportunity,” Alonso conveyed to DAZN, having just observed Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg secure a maiden podium finish.
“I’m not content, clearly. We initiated the race in seventh position and concluded in ninth – an indication of subpar execution.”
“Typically, in such scenarios, his [Stroll’s] side of the garage tends to exhibit greater precision. They performed commendably. As a matter of fact, Lance executed two pit stops before I even undertook my first, propelling him to third position.”
“That’s precisely why I occasionally struggle to comprehend, given that we possess another car furnishing us with information, and with that car occupying third place, I struggle to grasp why we can’t leverage that information from our side of the garage. It’s an internal matter.”
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing, Carlos Sainz, Williams
Photo by: Zak Mauger / LAT Images via Getty Images
This situation left the 43-year-old with a “sour sentiment,” given that drivers rely most heavily on their teams precisely during variable weather conditions.
“I possess the experience, but I lack access to the data,” Alonso noted. “When I receive the directive to pit, I comply. I am capable of providing feedback on track conditions, but my capacity extends no further.”
“Whoever asserts that the driver dictates [the decisions] under these circumstances and triumphs in the races is propagating falsehoods.”
“This is fundamentally a data-driven race, governed by all the parameters available within the car. I concede that the initial stop was challenging to decipher; I appreciate that.”
“I believe [Lewis] Hamilton, [George] Russell, [Pierre] Gasly, Carlos [Sainz], and myself all executed stops on the same lap. Naturally, we were positioned at P5, P6, and P7, rendering it highly risky to gamble at that juncture in the race.”
“However, we emerged behind Esteban [Ocon], Lance, Nico, and a multitude of cars that made more judicious decisions regarding the initial stop. And then the subsequent [stop]… I was the vanguard in pitting for dry tires.”
“The team surmised that the intermediate tire was experiencing a decline in surface temperature, thereby necessitating a pit stop. And I forfeited approximately 25 seconds again, which was indeed frustrating.”
Nevertheless, Aston Martin’s team principal, Andy Cowell, has refuted the existence of a strategic deficiency within Alonso’s side of the garage, emphasizing that the markedly disparate starting positions presented opportunities for divergent strategies prior to the race.
“I don’t perceive any underlying issue,” Cowell stated. “The strategy is formulated centrally due to the existence of a single pit box.”
“Thus, it is imperative to approach it from a holistic team perspective. Early on, the timing of the stop appeared unequivocally clear.”
“Intermediate tires were progressively undergoing wear, and the track was exhibiting increasing dryness. I believe, upon reviewing radio communications from all teams, that everyone was contemplating, ‘We ought to stop; we ought to stop. Now is the opportune moment to proceed’.”
“We opted to proceed early with Fernando. In retrospect, it was excessively premature. However, we very nearly executed stops for both cars within the same lap.”
It is solely with the benefit of hindsight that Cowell acknowledges it “would have been preferable” for Alonso to emulate Stroll’s strategy.
Irrespective, the Silverstone weekend culminates with Aston Martin positioned eighth in the constructors’ championship, while Stroll and Alonso respectively hold 12th and 14th positions in the drivers’ standings.
