Fernando Alonso’s adaptation to Formula 1 on his return after two years away from it has not been easy and a specific aspect has been largely to blame for it. The Asturian pilot himself tells it.
The Formula 1 It is a tremendously even sport, much more than it may seem, so any detail can cause a driver or team to lose performance and positions on the grid.
Is what happened to Fernando Alonso in a first third of the season in which he struggled to perform 100% with Alpine. The Spanish driver has already spoken on other occasions about his difficulties in adapting to the peculiar direction of the Anglo-French car, something in which a crucial aspect in current Formula 1 had a lot to do with it: the tires.
If you take that away from me, I’m lost. I don’t know what the car does and how much grip it has »
And, according to the Spanish rider himself, “adapting to a new team and new people is always difficult, but this year there was also a different construction on the front tires compared to that of 2020, and that was my main problem. Feel the front end, where was the limit ».
Alonso has always had a very peculiar corner entry style, which uses the initial grip of the tires to gauge his speed throughout the rest of the corner.
«My driving style is slightly different from the rest when it comes to using the steering wheel: I turn a lot at the beginning of the curve and that tells me how the car is and how much grip I have available. If you take that away from me, that information it gives me, I am lost. I don’t know what the car does and how much grip it has, “admits Alonso, who has nevertheless already passed that phase and performs at 100%, even reaching the podium at the last Qatar Grand Prix.
Differences between teams
Fernando Alonso’s career in Formula 1 has been marked by different teams. The Spanish has valued each of them.
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«At Renault (Alpine) you find a family atmosphere and a very pleasant proximity. At Ferrari it is more passionate, more chaotic, perhaps it is more typical of the Latin DNA of Spain or Italy. At McLaren they are more serious and precise, but perhaps they lack internal communication, ”says Alonso.
“Although it is a very professional environment. They are different environments, but they want to find the limits and reach the same goal, which is to create the car as quickly as possible.. They are all extreme in that sense, “concludes an Alonso who in 2022 will face his 19th season in Formula 1.