Fernando Alonso says he’s starting to get frustrated to not be able to finish higher than third place after another Red Bull one-two in the Miami Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen beat teammate Sergio Perez to victory after starting ninth in Florida, climbing through with ease before overtaking Perez in the late going. Alonso was over 20s adrift in third place as he picked up his fourth P3 in five races this season, and when it was put to him that it could be becoming frustrating to not secure a top-two result he replied: “It is, it is.
“Obviously we want to be one step higher on the podium in P2 and eventually one day have an opportunity to win a race but at the moment it didn’t happen because Red Bull is better than us — (they’re) stronger, (they’re) faster and reliability has been always outstanding for them as well, finishing both cars in every race. So if one day there is a crack there, if there is an opportunity, we need to make sure we are in that position and not making any mistakes at any point in the weekend.”
After dancing briefly on the podium, Alonso says Sunday’s run to third was an uneventful one but he’s proud of the consistency Aston Martin is showing.
“I did enjoy (the podium). Obviously the race…for us it was a little bit of a lonely race, nothing really to do in front of us with the Red Bulls but behind us not much pressure. So at the end, P3, and we take this good result for us and a fourth podium in five races. We only missed Baku by 0.8s so I think it’s a good moment so far.”
With many teams set to bring new parts to the start of the European season, the Spaniard says he’s still hopeful Aston Martin can keep its main rivals at bay.
“Let’s see. I think in Imola it’s going to be an interesting fight again. As you said, a lot of teams will bring upgrades to the car — Mercedes, probably Ferrari as well — and we will try to keep finishing in front of them on Sunday.”
