Alonso: In Zandvoort I felt connected to the car

Fernando Alonso summed up the weekend in Zandvoort…

Q: Fernando, for the seventh time this year you were on the podium and were incredibly fast in all conditions…
Fernando Alonso: This time the car performed really well and I was confident behind the wheel.

I trusted the car, and in such conditions it is especially important. She was fast on dry, fast on the intermediates and remained competitive early in the race when it started to rain and we were still on slicks.

Then we quickly switched to intermediate tires and couldn’t use this advantage, but I made a few overtakes, ahead of Alex and George on the first lap, and Lando on the second.

It’s one of those races where you feel connected to the car, you feel in sync with it, and whatever you do, the car responds perfectly. I am satisfied.

Ask the team has introduced a number of new products at this stage. Do you think you are back to the level you were at the beginning of the season?
Fernando Alonso: It is still too early to talk about it, but it is certain that the car behaves better than in previous races. It became much easier to manage, she added speed. This weekend we were in the top five in every session.

Let’s see how everything goes in Monza – there is a completely different circuit, where you need minimal downforce and low resistance.

Q: Before the restart at the end of the race, did you think about winning or defending second place?
Fernando AlonsoA: I was thinking about coming forward. I was not conservative. Before the restart I thought about what to do, how to act in the first and second corner, and I discussed it with the team.

Of course I didn’t want to lose valuable points for the team, second place is important for us, but they were happy that I wanted to try. I think they trust me and my decisions.

Before the restart I tried to go full throttle on cold tyres, which is a bit risky. At least I tried to overtake Max in Turn 1, but I wasn’t close to attacking. After that I tried different trajectories – indoors, outdoors – except Max chose, in case the grip turned out to be better there. I could get close, but it wasn’t enough.

Q: How did you overtake Albon and Russell in turn three on the first lap?
Fernando Alonso: During the first or second practice session on a wet track, I noticed that the grip in the inside radius of the third corner is better than on the usual track. All weekend I thought: I have to use it when it gets wet.

When the traffic lights turned red before the start, there were already raindrops on the visor. It’s always frustrating: you’re ready to start on slicks, but you realize it’s raining and you have no idea what the brake grip will be like in Turns 1 and 3. I thought everyone would be a little careful and that an attack could work within the radius. So finally it happened. I think it was the catch-up of the month!

Q: How do you rate Max’s performance this year? Do you think he is superior to everyone else? Or do you think you or Lewis could challenge him behind the wheel of the same car?
Fernando Alonso: Sometimes Max’s achievements are underestimated. To dominate in such a professional sport is always very difficult. To be on the same level with him, you have to feel a very great confidence. But riders are very confident people, so I believe I can get good results. I don’t know about Lewis, but I – yes! And Lewis too, and stuff. You have to enter a state where you feel part of the machine.

In this race I felt like I could give 100% but in Spa or Austria that feeling wasn’t there, I wasn’t as happy with myself as I was today. I think Max gets that 100% more times than any other rider, so he dominates.