Fernando Alonso would have hoped for so much more heading into his home Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya.
His last Formula 1 win came at the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix and the wait for victory number 33 has ticked over to more than 11 years with Aston Martin going backwards right now.
Journalist Ben Anderson spoke to Fernando Alonso after the race and recalled his rather short conversation with the two-time world champion on The Race Podcast.
Alonso committed his future to Aston Martin very early this year and will be driving for the British team when the new set of regulations are introduced in 2026.
The Spaniard must have had reassurances of the steps that were going to be taken over the next two years to make that decision, as at 42 years old, he’s not going to continue driving in Formula 1 just for the sake of it.
However, Alonso was very upset with his performance and the performance of his car on Sunday after finishing 12, with teammate Lance Stroll two places behind him in 14after both drivers failed to get into Q3.
Aston Martin’s position in the pecking order is now under scrutiny and other teams such as RB and Alpine may sniff a chance to jump above them in the coming races.
READ MORE: Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso’s life outside F1 from net worth to Cars 2
Fernando Alonso gives one-word answer to Aston Martin woes at the Spanish Grand Prix
Anderson shared his interaction with Alonso after the race and said: “Yes, he was very short with me when I tried to ask him about the performance profile of the car and what it was lacking around this circuit and he just said, ‘Downforce’.
“And I said, ‘Well, have you got a balance issue too?’, and he was like, ‘No, it’s just peak load’.
“I felt like maybe he’s said too much though over the weekend on what Aston [Martin] is lacking and also this upgrade they’ve got coming, they just need to survive the triple header and then they’ve got this next package that’s probably not going to work going on the car.
“And it feels like Alonso is starting to put a little public pressure on the team to actually deliver what they’re promising.”
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Aston Martin F1 Team from team principal to lineage
Aston Martin need to live up to Fernando Alonso’s expectations
Fernando Alonso in his official interview with the Formula 1 website was slightly more diplomatic.
The Spaniard said: “The whole weekend we have struggled with our pace, and we suffered with high tyre degradation in today’s race.
“It’s likely to be tough over the next few race weekends, but we will get our heads down, work even harder and look to improve.”
Alonso’s engineers have already shared just how incredible his work ethic is, impressing them with his dedication as soon as he arrived at the team.
Rob Smedley has also shared in the past the advantage that Alonso gives you when he joins your team such is his experience in the sport.
However, he also has extremely high demands for his team and he’ll be beginning to worry that he’s once again committed his future to a team that can’t live up to his expectations.
It means he’ll be praying that Aston Martin’s interest in Adrian Newey gets over the line.
The pair have never worked together – although Newey has previously admitted his desire to work alongside Alonso – and the designer’s reputation for nailing new regulations when they’re introduced would potentially give Aston Martin the boost they desperately need.
The post ‘Very short with me’: Fernando Alonso gave one-word answer to sum up Aston Martin Spain disaster – journalist appeared first on F1 Oversteer.