Alpine needs to take the example of Aston Martin as it continues to push towards the front of the Formula 1 grid. Aston Martin, on the other hand, was a lowly seventh. But over the winter, Alpine’s Fernando Alonso switched over to Aston Martin just as the Silverstone based team was completing its 2023 car. “The Bahrain race was not normal for us,” Szafnauer insists. “The first was because he was out of position at the start,” Szafnauer said. However, he said Ocon’s pace in qualifying was actually not far from Aston Martin’s. Aston Martin is already facing criticism for the similarity between its new car and last year’s title-winning Red Bull, but Szafnauer actually defends his former team. “The Mercedes wind tunnel is very good and I don’t think sharing it is a penalty, because otherwise people wouldn’t do that,” Szafnauer said. “He is enormously motivated – he lives for this,” Szafnauer said.

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