Fernando Alonso started the Turkish Grand Prix fifth, his best starting position since Japan in 2014. However, after being rammed by Pierre Gasly in the first corner, the Spaniard was relegated to the rear of the grid. This is something that Alonso regretted after the race, although it also left him ahead of the lead in the Overtake Award . The driver who overtakes the most this season will receive an award created by Liberty Media and sponsored by Crypto.com .
Fernando Alonso was relegated to the back of the grid after his incident with Gasly , and although he sought the comeback, he ended up ramming Mick Schumacher. Pierre Gasly was given five seconds for touching Alonso and Alonso received the same punishment for doing the same with Schumacher . From then on, coming back to try to score a point in Istanbul was impossible for the Alpine rider.
The positive side is that Fernando Alonso added seven overtaking in the Turkish Grand Prix, remaining just one behind Sebastian Vettel , who leads the Overtake Award with a total of 96 . With six races to go to the end of the Formula 1 World Championship, the Spaniard leads Sergio Pérez and Carlos Sainz in five overtakes, who has fully immersed himself in the fight for the title after going back from fifteenth to eighth position in Istanbul . Fernando Alonso , for his part, has overtaken a Lance Stroll in this classification, which he already surpasses by ten overtaking as well as Daniel Ricciardo.
Seb remains in the lead of our overall overtake standings 👏
But @alo_oficial is close behind! 🤔
Who will take P1 to claim the @cryptocom Overtake Award at the end of the season? 👀#F1 | https://t.co/8PdPZlBesT pic.twitter.com/JXYtKGDs1y
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 12, 2021
What is the Overtake Award?
On August 24, with the Formula 1 season already underway, Ben Pincus announced in a statement the creation of the Overtake Award . “We are very happy to expand our partnership with Crypto.com. Together we premiered the Overtak Award, which will enter Formula 1 this season , adding to the collaboration we already had with sprint qualifications. This award will reward the drivers with the most instinct for overtaking , an instinct that is also necessary when you work in the world of cryptocurrency ”, said the director of commercial unions of Formula 1.
The Overtake Award has reignited the battle between Alonso and Vettel
Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel disputed the title of World Champion in 2010 . With a Red Bull far superior to the Asturian’s Ferrari, the German driver would end up taking the title with just 4 points ahead. Tighter was the fight between the two in 2012 . On that occasion Sebastian Vettel won over Fernando Alonso with a 3-point difference. In 2013 the Spaniard was also runner-up. He has been three times in his career and all three behind Sebastian Vettel, who that season was proclaimed champion for the fourth time by a wide margin of difference.
It remains to be seen if the Overtake Award is favorable to the German again. From what has been seen in this course, Fernando Alonso can be optimistic. And it is that both he and Alpine have gone from less to more this year, quite the opposite of Aston Martin and Vettel , who have been out of the points in the last four races.
The four-time champion only added one overtake in the Turkish Grand Prix for the seven that Fernando Alonso harvested. Regarding the Constructors’ World Championship, Alpine has settled in fifth place with 95 points while Aston Martin occupies seventh place after AlphaTauri with 59 .
