During the ‘Dutch GP’ Fernando Alonso managed to finish on the podium again. Alonso was very happy with his second place, although it might have been a bit more if he had attacked Verstappen on the last restart. However, Alonso said he did not dare to do this out of ‘fear’ for the Dutch fans.
“I thought about trying to make a move on Max on the restart,” Alonso said during the interviews at parc ferm after the race. However, Alonso feared that he would be figuratively ‘lynched’ by the many Verstappen fans on the Zandvoort circuit.
“I thought I wouldn’t be able to leave the track then so I calmly stayed second,” said Alonso with a smile. “We will win a race soon, we are getting closer.”
Alonso admitted that conditions during the race were very challenging, especially with the intermittent rain.
“It was a very, very intense race with wet conditions at the beginning,” Alonso reflected on the race. “We were very fast and we stopped maybe a lap late for the first pit stop the first time, but at the same time as the leaders.”
“The car flew today, we were very competitive, it was very easy to drive. In these difficult conditions you need a car you can rely on. And I was confident in the race today, I really enjoyed it.”
Back on the podium.
What a feeling. What a journey. We keep moving forwards.#DutchGP pic.twitter.com/dY53ZID0IU
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) August 27, 2023
Celebrating P2 with Fernando Alonso.
Scenes.#DutchGP pic.twitter.com/yntpJkDeNI
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) August 27, 2023