Alpine had high expectations for the car updates prepared for the Singapore round. In the second practice session, Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly showed the thirteenth and eighteenth fastest times respectively and admitted that a lot still needs to be done to make the A523 faster.
Esteban Ocon (13th): “It’s great to be back and riding the streets of Singapore again on a really cool and exciting track. We had a productive but very warm Friday – there was a lot to do within our program.
Firstly, I gained useful experience by riding on a slightly modified track configuration and testing new products. At this stage I can say that we still have a lot of work to do in the third practice before qualifying, because we have to find a way to improve.
We can get more out of the car and I can drive better myself. Hopefully we can join forces and finish in a higher qualifying position.”
Pierre Gasly (18th): “It is always a pleasure to come to Singapore and compete on the beautiful Marina Bay circuit. The heat and humidity are palpable in the cockpit, but that’s one of the challenges of racing here.
Today was a busy day for us, there was a lot to test. The team made several minor updates, so it was important to evaluate their aerodynamic efficiency.
When we talk about speed, we still have work to do. We need to work on the settings because there are a few areas where we can definitely improve tomorrow.
I liked the new configuration. It will be interesting to see how the changes will affect the race and whether they will lead to more overtaking actions.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
