Alonso left unsurprised by Ferrari pole after hinting underachievement
Alonso left unsurprised by Ferrari pole after hinting underachievement
Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso has played down Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz's pole position at the Italian Grand Prix, saying he's not surprised as in his eyes the Prancing Horse have "had a great car all year".
The former Ferrari driver took aim at the Maranello-based team's strategies and mistakes which had led them to being fourth in the F1 standings.
In a cheeky remark, Alonso had a swipe at Ferrari, suggesting that the real surprise is that the Italian team are trailing Aston Martin in the constructors' championship.
"It is normal because they've had a great car all year," said the Spaniard when asked by Fox Sports MX whether he is surprised by Sainz beating Verstappen to claim pole.
"It's just that some forget that because of minor situations that have played against them, strategy mistakes, penalties, and stuff like that.
"The surprise is that they are behind us in the constructors'."
READ MORE: F1 Qualifying Results: Italian Grand Prix 2023 times as Ferrari take FAMOUS pole
Aston Martin unprepared?
As the conversation shifted to the race itself, with Monza typically being a one-stop race, Alonso was asked about his expectations, especially considering the expected rise in temperatures.
"Well, we don't have anything prepared," he replied.
"We will be flexible, and the important part will be to keep ourselves within the train of cars that will be formed to be able to keep fighting for the points."
Despite Alonso's dig it's highly unlikely that Ferrari will be behind Aston Martin in standings after Sunday's race.
There is currently only a 14-point gap between the teams. With Sainz and Charles Leclerc starting in P1 and P3 and Alonso and Lance stroll starting P10 and P20 respectively, the safe money will be on the Italian team leapfrogging the team in green.
READ MORE: Alonso issues CHEEKY plea to F1 fans after Dutch Grand Prix heroics
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F1 Standings
Drivers
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Nyck De Vries
- Liam Lawson
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
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- Miami Grand Prix 2023
- Qatar Airways Gran Premio Del Made In Italy E Dell'emilia Romagna 2023
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2023
- AWS Gran Premio de España 2023
- Grand Prix du Canada 2023
- Grand Prix of Austria 2023
- Aramco Grand Prix of Great Britain 2023
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2023
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2023
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Italy 2023
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2023
- Grand Prix of Japan 2023
- Qatar Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of the United States 2023
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- Rolex Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2023
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2023
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