Fernando Alonso's chances of winning were washed away by rain in Monaco on Sunday. Photo: Getty Images/Joe Portlock
Fernando Alonso has yet to take advantage of another well-deserved and excellent second place for Aston Martin in Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix. He's an excellent driver — especially when he's excited — back in the car in front. During the first two-thirds of the race he did an excellent job of keeping Verstappen honest, usually within 10 seconds and keeping himself in the equation.
That all changed when it started to rain on lap 51. On lap 54, his team made the unusual decision to get him in the pit lane and put him on a fresh set of dry tyres, while race leader Verstappen stayed on his slicks and Red Bull waited. make a decision.
It soon became apparent that they had made a hasty and wrong decision. The rain intensified, and on the next lap, Alonso again entered the finish line to change tires to intermediate ones, as did Verstappen. In two laps, the Red Bull driver's lead increased from eight to 25 seconds, and Alonso's chances of winning evaporated.
Perhaps Aston Martin missed his best chance to win
Aston Martin missed the win? It's hard to say as there are many «ifs» and «buts» but they definitely missed their best chance of winning.
Alonso and Verstappen had different strategies from the start. By lap 50, neither was involved in a pit stop, Alonso on the firmer hard tyres, and Verstappen on the worn out averages on which he began to struggle. Alonso and Aston Martin then had the advantage and luxury of being able to drive longer than Verstappen, wait for it to rain — or not — and then make a decision.
You could hear the uncertainty in Alonso's voice. radio messages in anticipation of its shutdown. He didn't know what to do, and then he was told that he would switch to a new set of medium tires. It all happened so fast, but not necessarily.
Today's race cut to 78 seconds ⏰👇 pic.twitter.com/LfKBxWf7AG
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) May 28, 2023
The team thought that perhaps their best chance of beating Verstappen was to be on fresh slicks if the rain stopped fast enough and was light enough and the Red Bull rider was either on the old middle or new intermediate tyres. It was a left choice, more suited to a team with a rider in 15th rather than second.
Aston Martin wouldn't have lost much by waiting another lap or so. Alonso's hard tires were fine at that stage and he's experienced enough to keep them on the track in those conditions. The longer they waited, the easier the call was. Instead, they bet on an outside chance to win. It was a decision that should not have been made when it was made.
The decision was made by the midfield team, not by the real opponents
If they had made a more informed decision, they could have at least closed the gap away from Verstappen and put pressure on him. They might even inherit the lead by a good margin. Mistakes can happen under pressure and we've seen Verstappen hit the barrier a few times in the rain.
If Alonso was around, he would have to take more risks. One small mistake on this track in the wet can cost you five or six seconds, but after two pit stops Alonso was too far away to affect the course of the opponent's race.
Why did they challenge their strategy? Some of them come down to worldview. You can look at their decision through the lens of a team that finished seventh in the previous two seasons. It was like they were trying to get a result out of nowhere, a rare surprise podium, or a chance at glory.
Today's Aston Martin is probably the second or third best car on the grid. Alonso pushed Verstappen in this race and rivaled him with genuine pace even before the weather changed. Those were the decisions we made in Jordan in the 1990s when the sky opened up – we were usually a midfield team and we had less to lose and more to gain. But there are times when you just need to consolidate the good result that you have.
The wise and experienced Alonso should have canceled the team call.
The pilot should also take some responsibility. The team made the wrong bet, but Alonso, with all his experience and talent, can reverse their decision — and he should have done it. We saw this with Carlos Sainz on Sunday, who stayed at home when he was ordered into the pit lane.
We often hear a lot of radio conversations between Alonso and his team during the race. He is a smart character who understands a lot about what happens during the race. Yes, the team should have discussed his options and track conditions with him, but they should also have asked him for more information.
The weather radar systems the team uses are useful, but nothing prevents people from pitting. stick your finger out and see which way the wind is blowing. That's what's real.
The driver, however, is the ultimate radar. He is the only one who knows about the track and can feel what is happening in his car. He knows what kind of tires he has, where the wettest corners are and how much grip he has. You can put people in the hills of Monaco to give you this information, but the reality is that the driver has to set the music.
This is in contrast to the way Red Bull goes about their business. When it started to rain, Verstappen's race engineer essentially said, «Stay there with dry tires until you think it's getting too hard.»
Verstappen continued until the slicks could not be ridden. Red Bull provides information to its drivers, as do all teams, but the person in the cockpit plays a big role in the decision-making process.
Aston Martin have moved forward so quickly and it's impressive. But it looks like they may need a little more time to start thinking strategically, as a team that can challenge on the front lines. If they did it in Monaco, it could pay off.
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