Alonso once again defied reason: ``Even if I did this time trial 200 times, I wouldn't finish like this in 1999.'' - Sportish
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Alonso once again defied reason: “Even if I did this time trial 200 times, I wouldn’t finish like this in 1999.”

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Alonso once again defied reason: “Even if I did this time trial 200 times, I wouldn’t finish like this in 1999.”

“We’re on our eighth or ninth car here. That’s the reality.”highlighted Fernando Alonso on “DAZN” after qualifying for the Singapore GP. It was against all odds, even for him and his team. The Asturian once again beat the group’s data and computer predictions to finish in seventh place..

Some might say, “It’s magic.” “Miracle” and others. But when something like this repeats itself in the last four Grands Prix, perhaps we should think about another commonality. It was the sublime Alonso who managed to extract the oil from any scenario, capitalizing on the mistakes of his rivals and delivering perfect performances at key moments. Achieving the unthinkable. His Q3 result at Zandvoort was unthinkable, and achieving it at Monza, Baku and then Singapore, where his car’s performance was even worse, was unthinkable. But he did it. You can’t talk about luck or chance. It’s a hand, a job, a talent.

The data showed that Fernando’s desired result in qualifying in Singapore with a car that was unsuited to the characteristics of the Marina Bay circuit was to remain in Q1, as did his teammate Stroll, who finished 17th.. In fact, he stressed that FP3 showed the reality of his car At circuits like Singapore, traction and rotation in slow corners are weak, so In FP3, Stroll finished 18th, just ahead of the two Saubers. But Alonso has done it again. He completed three sectors on every turn and took advantage of his rival’s mistakes to take seventh place. He once again did everything perfectly with fewer weapons than the other competitors and managed to achieve seventh place in rough seas, but it is clear that he will not be able to achieve it again “even if this classification were repeated 199 more times” .

“I wasn’t expecting this at all today.”

“To be honest, I wasn’t expecting this at all today. We had a difficult weekend, but I think this circuit brought out all the weaknesses in our car. There’s no traction or steering wheel rotation in slow corners, and there’s not much stability under braking. Overall this circuit was a bit scary and I was not comfortable, which was confirmed in every session.Alonso expressed on DAZN that he was surprised by his performance and explained how he overcame each part of the classification step by step.


“We had advanced in Q1 and I was already happy. I said, ‘I’m going to stay here for now.’ Then in Q2 when I was told I was 10th, I said on the radio to tell me who was coming back. ‘They were definitely going to kick me out.“But in the end, I missed out on Q2 in 10th place, and in the final Q3 there would be two Ferraris behind me, so who could have predicted that Tsunoda would still not be able to set a perfect lap?” said.

“The rap was very good”

“The last lap was very good. All the laps were very good. In free practice 3, I already had good stability with the car and felt comfortable. It wasn’t super fast, but it was 1 minute 31.0 seconds. I was able to record a time of 31.1 seconds.” The three laps I did in FP3 were 31.1 seconds, so the car was almost constant and I was able to complete the laps without making many mistakes. It helped us get into position and avoid mistakes. But points will be awarded tomorrow, ”he asserted.

“Logically, on a street circuit where overtaking is difficult, it’s better to start from the front, so I’m very happy with seventh place, but we have to get the job done this Sunday,” said the Spaniard. the player added. He doesn’t think about trying to protect himself between walls in a car with poor race pace, preferring to focus on what’s coming up in the last minute – the start. He wants to start attacking in order to gain a position ahead of Hulkenberg and take sixth place.

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Regarding attacks at the exit

“I’ll start seventh on the clean side, but there’s a good chance I’ll be sixth by the first corner. So I’m a little bit out of position and tomorrow I’ll race as if I don’t belong in the position I’m in. It’s going to be a truck, but we’ll do the best we can.” he explained.

In fact, he revealed that he did not think he would be able to secure a clean team at the start after Sainz’s accident in Q3 confirmed his ninth place. But he took the risk and the result was even better.

“I’m going to get a good start. I wanted to be ninth because I know there’s a big difference between the clean zone and the dirty zone, but when I saw that Sainz wasn’t going to do that, I couldn’t start. We were able to do that, so we wanted to reserve ninth place in case we finished eighth, but that gave us the quality to finish seventh. I did 200 time trials this time, but I didn’t finish seventh in 199. I’d like to build on today’s result and see what I can do tomorrow,” he commented.

defensive competition between walls

Fernando Alonso will have to go wide on a rickety track like Singapore to protect himself from much faster cars. In this sense, he believes that the fact that there are four DRS zones is not helpful and could potentially lead to losing positions to higher-ranking vehicles. So just think about finishing within points.

“There are four DRS zones and unfortunately that will help (those trying to overtake). I wish I could have done 50 laps as I started without DRS. But hey, there’s a No. 8 or No. 9 car here. And that’s the reality. we don’t hide it. Lance was 18th in free practice 3, followed by only two Sauber cars, as we have seen in all sessions. And tomorrow we start from 7th place so we can dream of overtaking Haas, we can dream of whatever we want, but if we do get points, we will do well to accumulate points and give them points. I have to get out of here right away on Monday so I don’t get robbed. ” he concluded.

Source: Mundo Deportivo

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Ferrari names troubled chief engineer over Lewis Hamilton

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Ferrari names troubled chief engineer over Lewis Hamilton

According to reports in the Italian media, the Ferrari team has made a decision about race engineer Lewis Hamilton for the 2026 season.

Riccardo Adami has been working with the seven-time world champion since the Briton moved to the Scuderia in January 2025. But there were a few strange and resonant radio conversations between them throughout the season.

During the Australian Grand Prix, Hamilton appeared confused by the lack of information from his engineer, and at the Miami round he reacted strongly to the situation, issuing team orders and advising the team to “drink some tea” after Charles Leclerc refused to let him pass.

At the Monaco Grand Prix, Riccardo Adami asked Hamilton: “Are you mad at me?” There was another incident where he ignored her request. Ferrari later announced that the engineer had left the pit wall at that time.

A similar situation was repeated after the last race of the season. During the radio exchange, Hamilton thanked the team and the race engineer for their cooperation, but received no response. The Briton then asked if they had heard him and received an explanation that the team were talking to each other at the time.

At the end of the season, team principal Fred Vasser said the Scuderia would review Hamilton’s inner circle to improve their results. And it looks like the decision has already been made.

According to Italian publication Auto Racer, Ferrari has decided to retain Riccardo Adami as Hamilton’s race engineer for 2026. The most important reason for this was a “very positive” private dinner between the pilot and the engineer.

The team expects to take a serious step forward in 2026 in light of new technical regulations. Next season could be decisive for Hamilton because 2026 is considered the last year of his current contract with Ferrari.

His first season in the Scuderia was a difficult one for the Briton. Hamilton finished the championship in sixth place using the problematic SF-25 car, but lost 86 points to his teammate.

Hamilton went a season without a podium for the first time in his career, while Leclerc scored seven goals. Of particular concern was the seven-time champion’s deteriorating qualifying form later in the year.

Source: Sport UA

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Mercedes boss: ‘Russell is ready to become F1 champion in 2026’

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Mercedes boss: ‘Russell is ready to become F1 champion in 2026’

Mercedes Formula 1 team president Toto Wolff believes that driver George Russell is ready to become a champion, but young Andrea Kimi Antonelli still needs time.

“Nobody knows how much power the Mercedes engine will have in 2026. We don’t know what the other teams’ engines will be like either. Is Russell ready to take the championship if given the right car? 100%, absolutely ready. There is nothing to add here. He is ready to be champion.”

“Antonelli is only 19 years old. What kind of peak are we talking about? He can be at the peak after 3-5 seasons. I believe we should give him this time to gain experience.”

“It’s moving in the right direction,” Wolff said.

F1 will have new technical regulations on engines and aerodynamics from the 2026 season.

Source: Sport UA

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F1’s best rookie has his sights set on Ferrari: ‘Winning in red is my goal’

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F1’s best rookie has his sights set on Ferrari: ‘Winning in red is my goal’

Haas driver and Ferrari development program graduate Olliver Berman said his goal is to race in the Scuderia in the future and win victories with the red car.

The Briton was already racing for Ferrari at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix when he replaced Carlos Sainz due to appendicitis. He has since made significant progress at Haas and will remain with the team at the start of the new season.

Berman congratulated Isak Hajar on his promotion to Red Bull and said:

“Yes, of course I’m a little jealous that he will be fighting for high results in a team like Red Bull. But I’m sure my time will come, too, and I’m very happy for that. We’ve been racing since Formula 3 and he has shown incredible talent and speed. It’s great that the new generation of drivers are being recognized and now both Kimi and Isak are in the top teams. That’s great. All you have to do is wait for your chance and it will definitely come.”

Berman said about his dream of competing for the Scuderia:

“This is definitely my dream. It motivates me to do my best and I get up every morning to do my best in everything I do. I want to perform in the red. I want to win in the red. That’s my life goal. I’ve been lucky enough to feel it once already and I know what it feels like, so I try to get back to that regularly.”

Source: Sport UA

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