Alonso 'can't say Aston will fight for victories in 2023'
Fernando Alonso says he's keeping his feet on the ground when it comes to expectations for what he will be able to achieve with his new team Aston Martin in 2023.
But looking longer term, the two-time world champion insists that he is confident that the squad is destined for future success and will eventually become race winners and even title contenders.
“I cannot say to anyone that we will be fighting for victories this year. I will lie if I say that," he said at the team's launch event at its new Silverstone headquarters on Monday evening.
“I have my feet on the ground,” he insisted. “But at the same time, we want to have a good car to start with, and to work and develop that car throughout the season.
“Maybe in the second part of the year we can get closer," he suggested. "If there is an opportunity that is in changeable conditions, if the opportunity comes, we will not miss that opportunity.
“But at the beginning I expect some difficult races until we find where the car operates, in which window we have to work with the set-up.”
Alonso's last Grand Prix win was almost exactly ten years who when he claimed victory in the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix with Ferrari. Since then he's had spells at McLaren and Alpine, and took a two year sabbatical racing in sportscars.
Although he suffered a serious of reliability issues last year, Alonso put in a series of brilliant drives which helped Alpine take fourth place in the constructors championship.
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But he made the surprise decision to accept a multi-year deal to move to Aston Martin, despite that team finishing in seventh place in the 2022 standings.
“Last year the package had some difficulties, as we all saw from the outside,” Alonso said. “The team went through a few things during the season and they improved a lot at the end of the year.
“Those difficulties are very good when you understand them and you can programme something from that car," he pointed out. "This is the real first car with this new set of regulations that hopefully Aston Martin can develop in the future.
“That will be for me the biggest thing this year - that we can develop throughout the season, and can finish 2023 knowing that this is a baseline for the future Aston Martin cars.
“Maybe they need experience [of] fighting for wins regularly, or championships or podiums every weekend, but they trust in themselves. They have self confidence and they know that they can achieve that.
“This is very different compared to any other team that I joined in the last few occasions, where maybe they had success in the past and they were just in a comfortable position.
"They finished fourth and they were happy with fourth. They finished fifth and they were happy with fifth. If we were seventh, it was a celebration," he said. “Here there are no celebrations until we win, and this is very appealing.
"If one day we have Aston Martin dominating races and championships and the two drivers are fighting for the championship like Red Bull ... It will be a proud moment for me.
"Even if I am not driving [at that point], I would be super proud to be a part of this organisation."
Alonso will take up Sebastian Vettel's seat after the German driver's retirement at the end of last season, and will be driving alongside Canadian driver Lance Stroll.
"This is probably my last team that I drive for, and I have known Lawrence [Stroll] and Lance for many years," he acknowledged. "I knew Lance when he was in the Ferrari Driver Academy and that was in 2012, 11 years ago.
“Obviously we have the leadership of Lawrence that I have known for many years now. He had a lot of success in many different things and many different projects in his life.
“There is no doubt that Formula 1 will be no different, he will succeed sooner or later," Alonso asserted. "That’s something that is very motivating for the new people that join the team.
"There are a lot of things going on right now with these new people that have joined the team with new ideas, and we’ve a new factory, new wind tunnel.
“For sure it will take time. This is more of a long-term benefit that you will see," he conceded. "There are a lot of things right. In Formula 1, there are no shortcuts, you need the investment, you need the talent in the factory.
"I know that my time behind the wheel is not unlimited, but I will try to make this process as short as possible and help the team as much as I can.”
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