The day for Fernando Alonso began in a rather gray way, since in his first laps at the new Miami circuit he was not entirely comfortable with the grip of the Alpine A522 , something visible in the most twisty area.
In the initial moments of the free practice session that opened the American track, the two-time world champion lost control of the car when he jumped over the curbs of the chicane with the change of elevation, as did Sergio Pérez, although the Mexican He did not risk as much as Alonso, who came to touch the wall at the exit of this section.
However, despite initial problems, the driver from Oviedo recovered to be the driver with the most kilometers accumulated on Friday morning in Florida, as he completed a total of 30 laps with one set of medium tires and another two on soft. with which he set his best time.
The 1:32.884 served him to obtain a modest 12th place, more than a second and a half behind the leader, Charles Leclerc, who with his Ferrari beat the entire grid, although George Russell’s Mercedes was in his wake, just 71 thousandths, reaffirming the progress they have made on the Silver Arrows.
Before getting into the car, Fernando Alonso stated that he was at a level similar to that of the 2012 season, when he fought until the last race for the world title, which ended up in the hands of Sebastian Vettel.
“It’s a bit strange to only have two points in the championship after having probably had my best start in terms of competition for ten years,” said the Alpine.
These words went deep for the second free practice session, since he climbed to 5th position after shooting 20 laps , staying just over four tenths off Russell’s mark, who was the fastest of the day with a 1:29.938.
The two-time champion got better with the car in the afternoon in Miami, and you could see when he came to lead the grid for moments, although the lack of pace is evident in the French garage, as they succumbed to Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes .
Fernando Alonso’s comments after Friday in Miami: “It was a good day for us, learning the circuit and going from the laps in the simulator to the real track. There are always some differences in that, so it was about understanding everything quickly. “It’s an interesting track to drive and I think we had a clean Friday. There’s a lot of data to analyze now, and it seems clear there’s a lot more to come for everyone. We have to keep fine-tuning the car; we’re fast again this weekend and I think that we are in a good position, I am optimistic”.
Statement from Alan Permane, sporting director of Alpine, after Friday in Miami: “It’s great to be here in Miami and experience the hustle and bustle that Formula 1 brings to the city. The organizers have done a very good job in building a circuit impressive with fantastic facilities, which has brought a really great atmosphere to the event”.
“In terms of performance on track, we had two solid sessions with both cars, albeit with some interruptions with various red flags. We were focused on improving our race pace, so this Friday, our aim was based on some experiments to understand better and ultimately improve our race pace in long runs. That both drivers were inside the top ten and Fernando in fifth, shows that our one lap pace is still strong. It’s hard to get a clear picture in runs long due to the red flags in Free Practice 2, so there’s a bit more work to do on that front. Other than that, it was a good day and we’re all looking forward to the rest of the weekend.”
It remains to be seen whether Alpine will have a machine worthy of continuing to be as strong on Sunday as they have been on a lap, where they have proven to be fast, contending for pole position in Australia and finishing fifth in wet conditions at Imola.
The photos of Fernando Alonso on Friday of the Miami GP 2022 of F1
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Foto de: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
Foto de: Carl Bingham / Motorsport Images
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Mark Sutton/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Zak Mauger/Motorsport Images
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
