autoevolution
 

Engine Issue Kept Alpine’s Fernando Alonso From Fighting Mercedes for a Podium in Canada

As rain came down over Circuit Gilles Villeneuve during Saturday’s qualifying session, teams scrambled to find the right time to switch from Intermediate to Full Wet tires. As things settled down, Alpine’s Fernando Alonso triumphantly qualified P2 on the first line of the grid, right next to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Alpine F1 driver Fernando Alonso 7 photos
Photo: Alpine F1 Team
Alpine F1 driver Fernando AlonsoAlpine F1 driver Fernando AlonsoAlpine F1 driver Fernando AlonsoAlpine F1 driver Fernando AlonsoAlpine F1 driver Fernando AlonsoAlpine F1 driver Fernando Alonso
When all red lights turned green on Sunday, the Alpine driver managed to stay behind the reigning world champion for multiple laps. However, on lap 20, he encountered a power unit issue that cost him any chance of fighting for a podium.

According to team principal Otmar Szafnauer, that’s exactly what would have happened had Alonso’s power unit not been compromised by an air leak, which in turn hindered his straight-line speed, as reported by Motorsport.

In the end, the Spaniard was dropped to P9 from P7 by the stewards for weaving in front of Valtteri Bottas.

“Good points, but without the safety cars, I think it could have been a little bit better,” stated Szafnauer. “The pace of the car in the wet was good. The pace of the car in the dry, we thought we would be not as fast as the Ferraris and Red Bulls, but about as fast as the Mercedes.”

“And as it turned out, the Mercedes got us because of some circumstance. But in the championship overall, we’re not going to beat them, we have to be realistic, we’re not going to finish third. So, with those that we’re fighting for fourth, I’m really happy, we scored a lot of points.”

As for the air leak, Szafnauer says it was the likely culprit but that they hadn’t yet discovered where it came from.

“That [the leak] manifested itself in some higher temperatures, and then you had to manage, and so we were limited down the straight. Thank God it wasn’t big enough where we stopped.”

With the points they earned in Canada, Alpine are now just 9 points behind fourth-place McLaren in the Constructors Standings.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
About the author: Sergiu Tudose
Sergiu Tudose profile photo

Sergiu got to experience both American and European car "scenes" at an early age (his father drove a Ford Fiesta XR2 supermini in the 80s). After spending over 15 years at local and international auto publications, he's starting to appreciate comfort behind the wheel more than raw power and acceleration.
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories