If there is any pilot who is an expert in fishing in troubled rivers, it is Fernando Alonso. the start of Red Bull in the 2023 Formula 1 season It has been huge: two consecutive doubles and a feeling of superiority rarely seen in the ‘big circus’. He Saudi Arabian Grand Prix confirmed that Alonso is the alternative to Max Verstappen already Sergio Perez. The Aston Martin man has accumulated two podium finishes so far this year and wants to take advantage of the tension that exists in Red Bull to become the leader of the team.
Flavio Briatore, the manager of the Asturian, has already warned after the race in Jeddah: “The fight for the title is not over”. The Italian assured that Alonso will not miss out on Red Bull’s moments of weakness. The strong point of the two-time world champion is perseverance: even on days when things go worse, as in yeda, and with the five-second penalty, the man from Oviedo is up. As long as the performance of the Aston Martin Allow it, of course. The Silverstone team has an improvement plan for the car ahead of Imola and has almost 150 more hours in the wind tunnel than Red Bull until the summer. There are reasons to dream.
– The precedent of 2007
All Alonsistas fans have in mind what happened in the 2007 season Formula 1. On that occasion it was the Spaniard who starred in a fratricidal fight with Lewis Hamilton in McLaren Mercedes, which ended up benefiting a third party who took the title in the last race against all odds. On that occasion they were Kimi Raikkonen y Ferrari those who took advantage of the open war in the English team.
As a curiosity, Raikkönen also got on the podium in the first two rounds of the yearwhen everyone pointed to Alonso and Hamilton as great favorites for the title due to the performance of that MP4-22. It is not the only time that two teammates have fought for the title. The best example of this is the rivalry that also occurred at McLaren between Ayrton Senna y Alain Prost; but there are more recent ones, like when Nico Rosberg dethroned Lewis Hamilton in 2016 when Mercedes was in another league.
Precisely Checo Pérez wants to be a Rosberg for Verstappen. Verstappen’s engine failure in qualifying at Jeddah forced the Dutchman to start fifteenth in the race. He climbed up to second position and, when he threatened to chase Pérez, he did not give up. The Mexican traced the times of the champion, after endless radios in which Verstappen did not meet the deltas that were required of him from the wall. The Dutchman scored the fast lap in the last turn of the race, taking the additional point to place himself alone, by just one unit, at the head of the World Cup. Pérez was surprised by this and didn’t know it until he discussed it with Max, before going up to the podium. Tension was cut with a knife.
– “I’m not here to be second”
Verstappen’s anger at the end of the race was visible. The relationship between the two drivers last season ended very badly. The two-time champion did not give up the position in Brazil to help his partner to be runner-up. The relationship had broken off a few months earlier in Monaco due to the accident that Checo Pérez caused in the Grand Prix classification in order to ensure that he came out ahead of Verstappen. The young pilot does not forget.
Pérez deleted his post on Twitter after the race, in which he said: “I want to be world champion”. The Mexican deleted the message and uploaded it again, omitting this last part. Team orders? What is clear is that Pérez has grown tired of turning the other cheek with the egotistical Dutch driver, and he has the chance of a lifetime to be champion. A dream that he can fulfill if he gives 100% on the track and becomes the rebel pilot of the energy drink. The one who will surely be on the lookout is also Alonsowho is an old dog and is tanned in a thousand battles.
