F1 News: Fernando Alonso is already impressing Aston Martin
Fernando Alonso has spent little over a day working with Aston Martin in the Abu Dhabi post-season test but has already left a strong impression on the British squad.
The Spaniard spent much of his 2022 campaign growing frustrated with Alpine's reliability, which proved a consistent limiting factor for his results.
Despite demonstrating extraordinary pace in weekends such as Australia and Canada, mechanical issues with his A522 prevented Alonso's final results from reflecting this.
When combining this with Alpine's reluctance to offer Alonso a multi-year deal as a sign of commitment, the Double Champion made the decision to sign with Aston Martin.
Looking ahead to 2023, Aston Martin's team principal Mike Krack has explained that Alonso's determination is inspiring@, as quoted by motorlat.com:
"The efficiency of transmitting messages was very impressive. It was straight to the point at all times. Very friendly, open and transparent.
"With Fernando, I always hoped up this picture of the Mexican Grand Prix - at his frustration at not having finished seventh [due to a reliability failure].
"This is an example of dedication and motivation.
"So if you have someone with this passion and drive to win, it has an impact on the team."
Alonso's arrival is a statement of intent from Aston Martin, who look to climb up the field in 2023.
After a very underwhelming start to the 2022 regulations in Bahrain, the British squad succeeded in making significant progress in development throughout the season.
Whilst this undoubtedly serves as encouragement for Alonso, Aston will need to make more improvement over the winter to achieve its ambitious goals next season.
The team has received significant investment and signed several high-profile engineers in recent years, so 2023 will be an opportunity for the Silverstone-based squad to showcase its potential for the remainder of these regulations.