Fernando Alonso believes it’s time for his bad luck to come to an end over the final six races of the year.
The Ferrari driver said he’d run into trouble on the opening laps of five races so far in 2010:
It seems that this year, the opening laps have not gone too well for me: in five races out of thirteen, I have found myself slipping to the back, either because of our own mistakes or because of circumstances beyond our control, as was the case two days ago in Belgium.
I have always said – and I repeat it now – that in the course of the season, good luck and bad luck tend to balance one another out, so let’s hope that from now on it’s payback time!
Fernando Alonso
Rubens Barrichello crashed into him on the first lap of the Belgian Grand Prix. Alonso also tangled with Jenson Button in Melbourne and his team mate at Silverstone.
At Shanghai he jumped the start and was handed a drive-through penalty. And at Sepang, despite gaining places having started near the back of the grid, he fell behind rivals Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa.
With six races to go he is 41 points behind championship leader Hamilton – notwithstanding what might happen in the World Motor Sports Council meeting one week from today. He said failure to get a good result in the next race at Monza would be a “hard knock for team morale”:
The first final went badly, but there are still six to go. Going into these seven races, I had said that whoever did the best job in them would take the title: clearly, there are now three of us who need to make up for ground lost in Spa.
With this points system and the way races swing one way or another, I am convinced we still have a significant chance. There are 150 points up for grabs, enough to turn the situation around. We must remain calm and concentrate, to try and make up the difference as soon as possible.
There is no denying that the Monza race will be very important. At our home circuit we will have to do everything to avoid losing any more points: a good result here would be a great boost. If things go badly, it won’t be over but it would be a hard knock for team morale.
Fernando Alonso
Read more: Ferrari to test new aero at Vairano
Jack Peekoc
1st September 2010, 12:37
Next year nando.
wasiF1
1st September 2010, 12:37
I thought that he will want to pay back Massa his victory!
I still think 41 points if way too far for him & if the two Red Bull driver don’t kill each other & they don’t have any reliability issue I think it’s Webber’s championship to loose.
Hare
6th September 2010, 8:17
To lose is right.
Personally I would like to see Button win again. If he wins from here, it’ll be worth seeing.
Ads21 (@ads21)
1st September 2010, 12:53
“And at Sepang, despite gaining places having started near the back of the grid, he fell behind rivals Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa.”
lol I think you forgot to metion that losing ground at the start in Malaysia was mostly due to the fact he arrived at turn 1 with no clutch!
US_Peter (@us_peter)
1st September 2010, 19:54
That whole race was truly impressive with no clutch.
Scribe (@scribe)
1st September 2010, 13:34
Fred, if I was you, I’d forget about this years title, drive without the preassure your clearly showing for the next six races, an while you might still get lucky and win it all, if you don’t you’ll have the confidence to blow em away next year.
Really think it’s Hamilton vs Webber for the rest of the season, still this season has shown us that a single result can change the whole picture so the top five can all hold out hope.
BasCB
1st September 2010, 14:31
On the one hand, I think its great he keeps fighting. On the other hand, the fact he is pushing as hard as he is surely contributes to the unusual amount of mistakes made by him this year.
US_Peter (@us_peter)
1st September 2010, 19:56
Same with Vettel. Impressive how well Hamilton’s done under pressure this year. He’s matured a lot just since the start of the season. It seems that firing his dad was the best thing he ever did.
Todfod
1st September 2010, 21:19
Nando has been cracking under pressure this year. If he can just race with a cool head for the next races, and hope that some of the other contenders get unlucky.
I hope to see him comeback stronger than ever next year.
George Manont
4th September 2010, 2:32
—>
……..” and hope that some of the other contenders get unlucky…..”
+1 … if they ain’t …have Rob and/or Jean radio all the other guys.
You’re the man, Todfod !
Cheers,
Dan Newton
1st September 2010, 15:03
Basicly I think he just wants to win in his first year with Ferrari. At least then he would equal the man he replaced.
Steph (@)
1st September 2010, 15:05
In old points there’s a 16 point deficit between Ham and Alo. In 07 Kimi pulled a 17 one back in 2 races. It’s still open.
I’m glad Alo sounds posivite on one hand about luck but when he starts describing this next result as being important and another bad result will make things an uphill struggle I can’t help but groan. Everytime anyone ever reports at a weekend he looks focussed and on it it means it’s either like Bahrain or Monaco. It heaps pressure on himself and it’s making him drive above and beyond his limits.
Ironically although he says he feels at home with Ferrari and his personality fits right in it’s probably making it worse. At Mclaren he was rattled by Ham and how things were managed but he said it was a little “cold” for him. It was more detaached and at Renault there was no expectations in 05 as the car was a surprise and in 06 everyone expected Schumi to win.
He’s been out of a title winning car for 2 years, in 07 he left Mclaren under a cloud after being beaten by a rookie and now he has a real chance but there is so much pressure he’s putting on himself and Ferrari drivers get the biggest stick in the world if they’re anywhere other than 1st.
Maybe the reason Kimi was so mistake free was that he was a very introspective driver. All drivers are selfish and arrogant but Kimi only looked to himself and didn’t give a damn abotu anyone else. Fernando by contrast, seems fragile and not quite his 06 self. I think he needs to start giving himself an easier time then the results will flow.
Menth
1st September 2010, 21:48
“In old points there’s a 16 point deficit between Ham and Alo. In 07 Kimi pulled a 17 one back in 2 races. It’s still open.”
But this time there is 3 other drivers between Alonso and the championship leader.
Tango
2nd September 2010, 8:32
And I hardly see Ham, Vet, Web or Button only scoring 3 points in old money in the two last races. The leader this year isn’t a rookie.
Prisoner Monkeys (@prisoner-monkeys)
1st September 2010, 15:36
Ha, words! Show me action!
Bernard
1st September 2010, 15:51
It’s been a shocking season for Alonso thus far and he still has 25 points to his name that will be deducted come Monza.
rfs
1st September 2010, 15:55
“In Overdrive: Formula 1 in the Zone, Barrichello’s long-time physiotherapist Raniero Giannotti points out one subtle difference between the two beneficiaries of Ferrari’s policy: “Of course Michael Schumacher has talent, but his force came from smiling and having fun. That’s the secret to success in every area of life. Valentino Rossi is always joking around on the grid right up to the moment he gets on the bike. What separates him out is the fact that he enjoys himself when he rides. That’s where his force comes from, just like Michael.””Fernando Alonso will never win so many titles – not because of his driving qualities but because he doesn’t enjoy himself so much. He feels too much pressure. Michael was also involved in politics, but driving was what he enjoyed most. When he put on his helmet these problems were no longer his worries.””
Interesting article about Alonso here: http://www.grandprix.com/ft/ft22478.html
Ads21 (@ads21)
1st September 2010, 16:44
That quote is quite interesting, cosidering how many people such as Briatore and others who’d worked at Bennetton/Renault with both drivers said that Alonso was better at handling high pressure situations such as title finales. This seems true when you compare Alonso in 2006 to Schumacher in 1994, 1997, 1998 and 2003.
Alonso seems to be able to deal with immense levels of outside pressure from on track such as Imola 2005 or off track such as Monza 2007, Singapore 2009 or Hungary 2010. But he seems less able to cope with the pressure that he puts on himself which seems to have only worsened during the wilderness years.
Steph (@)
1st September 2010, 17:21
“But he seems less able to cope with the pressure that he puts on himself which seems to have only worsened during the wilderness years.”
Agree, he seems to be able to show the world what he’s made of when he wants but when it comes ton living up to his own expectations like this season it has gone wrong.
DGR-F1
2nd September 2010, 10:16
Its strange how as a driver, the Ferrari team probably suit Fred really well, allowing him to be in charge and run his own race. Why then, does he appear to be under so much pressure? Is it from himself, from higher up the Ferrari heirarchy, or from somewhere else?
I think that just as with Schuey in Mercedes, expectations have been put too high, and maybe Fred and the team are making promises they aren’t able to keep – although not through lack of trying.
However, I think it will only take a few mistakes by Webber and Hammy in the remaining races and we could possibly see Alonso at the top, but I also agree with Steph, he needs to finish the season by showing the world what he is really capable of.
Jay Menon
3rd September 2010, 12:11
@DGR-F1
You make an interesting comment. I think Fred came into Ferrari hoping for a car that can win the title. Expectations were high from the day he showed at Maranello for the press event!
This is a fiercely competitive man, who will win at all costs, and its something that I feel none of us can understand unless you are a professional competitor. This was the same case with Schumacher, they want to win at all costs, thats naturally ingrained in them.
I just feel that, he was expecting a lot more out of the car and he’s just put himself under immense pressure to win. If people look past the fact that they hate Alonso, you have to admit that he’s been pushing that Ferrari right up to the limit all of this season, which in my opinion, is the reason why he’s made mistakes.
Thats no excuse though. He is a 2 time World Champion, he should know how much to push, which is what he hasn’t done well. This season has not gone his way, both by his fault and bad luck, he just needs to keep his down, keep out of trouble for the next 6 races and hope that the guys in front have a few slips and see what happens.
I really hope that Ferari will have front running car next year. Would love to see Alonso win the Championship again.
Dev
1st September 2010, 16:26
alonso only won cause he had better tires in 05 & 06 and also the car was very reliable compared to Mclaren or Ferrari then… today the tire advantage does not exist and also most of the cars are equally reliable…
Also let us not forget that Hamilton in his rookie season beat Alonso in the same machine.
Ferrari needs to accept the fact that they will not win anymore championships till the Sa(n)tader deal runs its course.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
1st September 2010, 16:46
“only won cause he had better tires in 05 and 06”
LOL… that’s simplistic!
No champion “wins by mere luck”. Alonso had to be there to pick up the wins others missed, like beating the Mclarens (ON THE SAME TYRES) in 2005 and gambling with the strategy in 2006 against the powerful Ferrari.
He beated Schumacher at Istambul and Magny Course, on a car that was slower then the Ferrari at the time.
David-A (@david-a)
2nd September 2010, 16:16
He didn’t beat Schumacher at Magny-Cours, Schumacher won from pole.
Todfod
1st September 2010, 21:31
@Dev. Tire advantage??? Do you mean the tires that were used by 8 out of the 11 teams on the grid? I wouldn’t really call Hamilton and Alonso ending a season with 109 points each, a beat. Ferrari wouldn’t sign him just for the money, as the most celebrated team in F1 history could have found funding from another source. They got him in the team because he amongst the top three drivers on the grid, and he will guarantee them one championship in his three year signing.
dragon
2nd September 2010, 5:23
I was wondering when we’d see the first Alonso-hate comment. Thanks Dev, for allowing the rest of us to file you away in the ‘useless posts’ list from here on in…
Dorian
2nd September 2010, 6:16
LOL….good call!
Tiomkin
2nd September 2010, 13:53
@Dev re-read your post. That defines a championship winning driver. F1 is a team sport, any weak links in the formula equals failure. So what is your point?
David-A (@david-a)
2nd September 2010, 16:21
Alonso only won the championship in 05 & 06 because he won 7 races i each season and topped the world championship table. End of.
Fer no.65
1st September 2010, 16:29
It’s RBR title to loose, IMO. Webber has the upper hand as well, with his consistency and a strong mentality over his erratic (but fast, yeah) team mate…
But maybe, if they continue to miss points because of stupidities among the team, Ferrari could’ve a shot at the champ still…
Appart from Monza, which should be a Merc-engine race, every other race doesn’t look bad for Ferrari. And they have Alonso, IMO the best allround driver on the grid, as a clear number 1.
So i’d not rule him out!
rfs
1st September 2010, 17:04
“And they have Alonso, IMO the best allround driver on the grid”
Lol, not anymore. Not this year anyway.
Not that I count him out, but he’s made too many mistakes and the form of the F10 has been too erratic.
BBT
1st September 2010, 19:47
RBR stand a very good chance of winning 4 of the last 5 races, so Ferrari or Mclaren really need a 1-2 at Monza, pushing the Bulls as far down the points as possible.
Even with a favourable results for Mclaren or Ferrari or both in Monza, IMO, it still relies on the Bull taking enough points off each other or themselves.
The others will need some races of their lives to have a realistic chance, which could happen (I’m not too keen on him but I have to concede Hamilton is on fire this year). Its still open; the weekend didn’t change things too much, too many races remain.
Finally, what happen in 2007 was a one in a hundred year event, but these things seem to happen more often in sport, which, I suppose is why we love it. However, there are more drivers that can pick up the pieces of someone else’s misfortune this year, so 2007 is irrelevant (straw clutching) and we aren’t any where near 2 races from the end.
I just hope it goes to the last race. :-)
US_Peter (@us_peter)
1st September 2010, 20:05
Hey Fernando, it’s called karma, and speaking of payback you still haven’t paid back for Germany in full. Expect at least a couple more bad “luck” races this year.
Icthyes (@icthyes)
1st September 2010, 20:50
Sorry Fernando, but I would have thought that choosing to change to intermediate tyres was a situation under your own control…
Ads21 (@ads21)
1st September 2010, 21:30
He had a puncture after Rubens whacked him so he had to go to the back of the field anyway and it was raining. Even if it turned out to be the wrong choice he had nothing to lose by going onto inters but everything to gain if it had kept raining.
Icthyes (@icthyes)
2nd September 2010, 12:20
But he still chose to do something others didn’t. Maybe it was luck/unforeseeable that it was the wrong gamble, but he still took that risk. And as we saw, he lost a lot by choosing the wrong tyres, and even more by doing when the SC had come back in and it had stopped raining a lap or two ago (if I recall correctly).
RaulZ
6th September 2010, 11:14
He made something other didn’t beacause he was the last on lap 1, and that situation was out of his control. I agree with Ads21 that he did the right thing but somtime works and other don’t work.
What I can’t understand is who decided things on saturday. At that moment he didn’t have the need of risking and looking for different strategies.
Maybe he was paying back to Massa leting him choose strategy and new updates at the car. If it was so, it’s clear that massa is a grey driver.
calski
1st September 2010, 20:53
Alonso needs to snap back to reality, realise what needs to be done and do it. He is a good driver and we all know what he can do. but atm he is bieng unrealistic and day dreaming.”It’s payback time?” and “I will win the championship!” he is starting to get a bit cocky.
Ads21 (@ads21)
1st September 2010, 21:05
lol Its payback time? read the whole quote. All he’s saying is he’s due a bit of luck this season. As for the message on the radio saying “We will win the championship” after Silverstone it was the perfect way to fire up the teams motivation after a dificult result.
Dorian
2nd September 2010, 6:24
It’s true that Alonso has made quite a few disappointing mistakes this year and it’s also true that a few have been beyond his control, but using this as basis for argument that he’s ‘past it’ or ‘will never win another title’ is ridiculous.
He is still the best on the grid, but don’t take my word for it, take the words of the current crop of F1 drivers who – yet again – voted him as the best driver in the field (23rd July this year). They, in my opinion, have the best idea of who’s hot and who’s not.
The only other driver in his league is Hamilton but I believe (despite his current fantastic form) he’s still just a notch below Alonso. Though, I suspect that in another year or two I might not being saying the same thing…
Hallard85
2nd September 2010, 20:21
“The only other driver in his league is Hamilton but I believe (despite his current fantastic form) he’s still just a notch below Alonso.”
Well, to be frank these two went head-to-head in the same machinery in 07, and Lewis came out on top (by the tiniest of margins though!) in his rookie year. I dont think you can make a very convincing argument that Hamilton is “a notch below” Alonso, but you are of course welcome to your opinion on the matter.
John H
2nd September 2010, 14:26
Getting hit by Rubens didn’t actually cost him that much time.
It was stupidly changing to inters.
This is the ‘LUCK’ that Ferrari keep going on about. It really gets me going that their arrogance blinds the fact that they are causing their own downfall. It’s not Lady luck, that’s just an excuse for a team in denial.
SPIDERman
2nd September 2010, 18:56
it seems pay back time also for massa also.. here as he is being investigated for jump starting at the spa race.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/86327
John H
2nd September 2010, 19:05
Well, if we, the fans, had efficient ways of contacting the FIA, they would have known and could have done something about it before Sunday night.
Pretty amateurish.
Red Andy
3rd September 2010, 9:26
I don’t agree. The “trial by media” aspect of F1 has already become too inflated and it doesn’t need to get any bigger. Where F1 is concerned, the most popular decisions are not always the right ones – leave it to those who are qualified to judge.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
3rd September 2010, 10:27
It’s not a question of ‘trial by media’, though, is it? Here, the FIA clearly overlooked something that was amiss and perhaps might have missed it entirely had it not been for the kind of fan footage that FOM goes to ridiculous lengths to suppress.
W-K
3rd September 2010, 4:43
In the BBC comentary Martin Brundle said “Massa is a long way over his start line. He overshot his start position by two metres, if the FIA spot that he should get a penalty.”
George Manont
3rd September 2010, 11:44
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If I were running the Ferrari team, I’d be glad to know that my driver, Fernando, is keeping his spirit high !
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At the same time, I’d politely cut his salary, as talk is known to be cheap, then renegotiate the deal. I’d put in pay-for-performance ( No WIN – No Pay ) into the clause.
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Finally, I’d pat on Felipe’s back, and tell him that I apologise for that radio at the German GP. However, I’d also apply the pay-for-performance with his contract as well.
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Oh, I’d also consider re-hire Jean Todt. Main reason is that this guy could deliver the radio-message smoother than Rob Smedley. His ” Let Michael pass for the Championship ” is already legend !
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