Fernando Alonso has said he feels that “more than anyone else”, Aston Martin deserved a win during the 2023 season.
After moving from Alpine to Aston Martin in 2023, Fernando Alonso found himself in the cockpit of a highly competitive car. His move, criticised by some, paid off, with his impressive performances throughout the season and securing six podium finishes in the first eight races.
Post-summer break, Alonso continued his strong form, adding two more podiums to his record, ultimately tying with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc for fourth in the drivers’ championship.
With eight podiums, Alonso ranked third in the season for visits, trailing behind the dominant Red Bull duo of champion Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. He also edged past McLaren driver Lando Norris on overall podium appearances for the year.
Despite not clinching a first-place finish and having fewer second-place finishes than Norris, Alonso remained convinced that Aston Martin was the most deserving of a win, particularly in light of its remarkable improvement since the 2022 Constructors’ leaderboard.
Alonso’s most notable chance for victory was at the Monaco Grand Prix. He narrowly missed securing pole position with Max Verstappen’s exceptional performance in the final sector, which would have significantly increased his chances of winning on the challenging street circuit.
Additionally, a contentious decision to switch to medium tyres during a rain-intensifying race further diminished his chances of surpassing Verstappen and capturing a much-anticipated victory.
“I think it was possible. Probably Monaco was the closest,” Alonso said. “Just maybe a tyre call change or something [would’ve made the difference]. Maybe Zandvoort, if we were in a different position in that restart or something.
“We had opportunities here and there. And I believe that we deserved it more than anyone else this year.”
Despite McLaren surpassing Aston Martin as the unexpected standout team post-summer break, Alonso maintains an optimistic view of 2023, focusing on the positives despite his team’s perplexing dip in performance towards the season’s conclusion.
This decline in competitiveness relegated Aston Martin to fifth place, behind the Woking-based team. Alonso’s perspective highlights that the Silverstone squad, despite their efforts, has yet to reach the status of a leading team in Formula 1.
“I see only positives and those struggles I think are part of the job and part of the journey of this team,” the 42-year-old explained. “We started really strong with the car that was surprisingly competitive, maybe even to us the step from last year to this year [was a surprise].
“And then we found ourselves maybe in a position that we were not ready for it. Fighting with Mercedes, Ferrari, top teams that they are used to fighting at that level. We maybe stepped back a little bit in terms of development on the car during the season.
“We are not at the top level yet and we found ourselves a little bit less competitive. But all in all it was unthinkable 12 months ago at this stage to think about the campaign we did.
“I remember perfectly the test last year after [Abu Dhabi] with the team and if someone had told me that we would be in this position, I would not have believed it.”
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