Having committed his future to Aston Martin next season, Fernando Alonso was initially upbeat about wrapping up his final season at Alpine. But his mood was grim after the last race in Mexico.
Smoke billowed from the back of his A522 as Alonso pulled to a stop during the latter part of the Mexican Grand Prix. Alonso, who had been running seventh, was visibly furious. Parking up at turn one, he climbed out of the cockpit, clenching his fists, his internal rage all-too apparent.
“For car 14, there is always reliability issues,” fumed Alonso as he spoke to us after car trouble halted his progress for the fifth time this year, once again when he was on course for points. This time it was a cylinder failure, which eventually became terminal with six laps remaining.
“It’s just amazing that only one or two cars retire at every race and it’s always car 14,” said Alonso after the race. “I blew up five engines this year, I think. The problem in the qualifying in Australia. In Austria, I didn’t even start the [sprint] race because of the blackout. So I think in 19 races, more or less 50% of the races, we haven’t scored the points we deserve.”
Compared to his team mate Esteban Ocon, who has retired twice this season in Silverstone and Singapore, Alonso has indeed had more than his fair share of bad luck. On top of those problems in Australia and Austria, he also retired from the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix and encountered more problems in Italy and Singapore.
Alonso estimates he’s lost “around 66” points due to car trouble this year. “And obviously, all the others benefit, so everyone scores two more than what they should,” he added. With two rounds to go, he lies ninth in the standings on 71, 11 shy of Ocon.
Alonso has a long-running relationship with the Enstone-based team, previously known as Renault, who he won the 2005 and 2006 championships with. But the team’s hesitation to agree a new deal with him earlier this year saw him pounce on the opportunity to join Aston Martin. The announcement caught the team on the hop when it was made the morning after the Hungarian Grand Prix.
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Now committed elsewhere for 2023, Alonso seems less inclined to hold his tongue about his car’s shortcomings. “I think we are unprepared,” claimed Alonso. “I mean, the engine cannot finish the races. It cannot be bad luck when you have to change six or…
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