The season opening Australian Grand Prix ended in disappointment for Fernando Alonso after he was forced to retire from the event with only a few laps remaining, but despite this he is heading into this weekends Chinese Grand Prix looking forward to seeing how his McLaren Honda performs.
While the reliability was an issue in testing and again for the Spaniard in Melbourne, he is confident that that things will get better as everyone puts in 110% effort behind the scenes.
He was also quick to point out that the Shanghai International Circuit is totally different to the Albert park venue and the team should also have an upgrade on the car for round two…
“Australia was a bit of a surprise for us, as we didn’t expect to perform at the level at we did, although on paper, ultimately, the results show the reality. We know there’s a lot of work to do and we aren’t delivering what we had aimed for pre-season, but equally we’re pushing hard behind the scenes,” he explained.
“Despite there being a few fly-aways at the start of the season, we’re still expecting to upgrades at every race, including China. In Shanghai last year everyone had their eye on the tyres as wear is typically high there and we often saw graining, but it’ll be interesting to see how the new compounds perform on this type of track. The weather is often unpredictable and temperatures can change a lot over the weekend, so it’s something all the teams have to manage with the balance and set-up of the car.”
“Shanghai is a really quirky track – Turn One is actually my favourite corner on the whole calendar – and it provides a good test for the driver with a high average speed compared to the street circuit of Melbourne. I’m looking forward to seeing what the new cars are capable of there, and I hope we can at least have a trouble-free race and see where we are when the chequered flag falls.”
