The Alpine team suffered some setbacks again on the first day of pre-season in Bahrain which, according to the team, were due to a series of configuration changes in their car during the afternoon session with Fernando Alonso, losing almost two hours without being able to leave the garage and running under 25 laps.
After some winter tests in Barcelona that sowed doubts in the French team, those from Enstone traveled to Shakir to prepare for the opening round of a course in which a totally radical new technical regulation is introduced.
On the morning of the last day of filming on the Catalan track, the Asturian driver took control of the A522, but a few minutes after taking to the track, a failure in the hydraulic system meant that the two-time champion had to stop the car for a fire in the power unit.
This is how the French single-seater left a stamp in which the smoke set off the alarms before the astonished eyes of Alonso , who could not prove more and left Esteban Ocon without getting into the car in the afternoon session.
Back in Bahrain, it took Alpine more than an hour to get out on the tarmac at all, as Ocon took just two installation laps before starting a longer run on Thursday morning. The Frenchman was able to shoot a little more as the morning session progressed, completing a total of 42 laps and finishing in sixth place (out of nine cars) far from Ferrari.
Fernando Alonso waited for his opportunity until the afternoon, and although it took a few minutes for him to take to the track, he was able to complete 13 laps before Alpine decided to return to the garage. The team started work on the right rear and concealed the car with panels outside the pits, which didn’t seem to bode well.
When asked by Motorsport.com if there was a problem, the team argued that it was just “a big set-up change” and hoped to be back on track soon.
However, the minutes passed and Alonso did not come out again until 4:15 p.m., an hour and three quarters after getting out of the car. Also, when he did, he only managed one lap before having to return to the pits for Alpine to work on the car again, dismantling the right sidepod and part of the car looking for a possible hydraulic leak.
Finally, with 32 minutes to go before the checkered flag, Alonso went out for the third time to shoot. He was finally able to open DRS (something he couldn’t do in Barcelona) and enjoyed the first duel on the track against a Lance Stroll whom he overtook and with whom he then fought for several corners before giving in.
In addition, he was in a medium session when Sergio Pérez’s spin caused a red flag that would end the day, leaving Alonso’s counter at 24 laps.
Be that as it may, whether they were mechanical problems (as it seemed) or configuration problems (as the team declared to our website), losing so much time on the first day of these tests in Bahrain and thus hiding the work you do in the garage It is a sign that there was some problem, major or minor.
Tomorrow will be the next opportunity for the team that wants to improve that fifth position they achieved last season, although it will be difficult to climb the table after seeing the performance of others such as Ferrari , McLaren, AlphaTauri, and even Aston Martin.
