While Massa's “motor” is the immense success he's had in Turkey from 2006 to 2008 (his 2006 win was his first in Formula One), Alonso's is the fact that he rests in 3rd place in the overall classification, only 3 points behind the Red Bull leaders, despite the tons of bad luck he had in the first 6 races of the season.
After winning the season opening Bahrain Grand Prix, Alonso experienced no less than 4 out of 5 difficult races, in which certain mistakes – China, Monaco – or racing/qualifying incidents beyond his control – Australia, Malaysia – have deprived him of a chance to take on the Red Bulls for race wins.
“If you think that, of the first six races, four times I found myself last or thereabouts after the opening laps and I am third in the world championship, three points off the leader, I have no reason not to be confident,” said the Spaniard prior to this weekend's race.
Additionally, Alonso will have the chance to score his and Ferrari's second win of the season in the Scuderia's 800th grand prix in Formula One. That alone is reason enough for both Ferrari drivers to push for the win, as a successful weekend will get them into the history books.
“Istanbul will be a very important race for us, not just for this championship, but also in terms of the history of Ferrari, as it will be the Scuderia's 800th grand prix. That will be a further motivating factor to get a good result and try and make it to the podium, hopefully ahead of the Red Bulls,” added Alonso.
Google News