Just when we thought Aston Martin would no longer be competitive this season after a dreadful weekend in Mexico, the Silverstone-based team delivered a shock third place with Fernando Alonso and an unexpected fifth place with Lance Stroll.
It is the first time we have seen a spectacular performance from the team since the Dutch Grand Prix when Alonso finished a brilliant P2 in mixed conditions. However, it was not that simple.
The Spanish driver started in Interlagos in 4th place and managed to run in 3rd throughout the race as the AMR23 finally showed its speed again. Sergio Perez, on the other hand, started ninth and worked his way up the order until he was just behind Alonso.
Probably the most intense battle we have seen all year started with just over 10 laps to go in the Brazilian Grand Prix with the Mexican driver chasing Alonso and consistently staying in DRS.
With just two laps to go, the Guadalajara native managed to overtake the two-time champion into turn 1, putting all the spectators on edge of their seats.
Nonetheless, the Spanish veteran did not give up and after an intense chase, he managed to regain his position by activating the DRS and making the move before turn 4 on the outside.
He took his traditional wide line into turn 12 to go uphill towards the finish line with the best possible exit, finishing just 0.053 seconds ahead of Perez, giving the crowd the most spectacular finish of the season.
After the race, both drivers congratulated each other and claimed to have thoroughly enjoyed the battle.
Photo credit: Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team
But how did the Spaniard achieve this? Mike Krack, speaking on the matter, said that the Alonso took some “unconventional” lines as he tried to fend off the faster RB19.
“It was an interesting fight in the last couple of laps. Obviously, the closer you go to the end of the race, the more exciting it gets… it was an interesting fight.
“You could see that we took some lines that were maybe a bit unconventional, let’s say. But Sergio behind was told to do the same, interestingly.”
The Aston Martin team principal took the opportunity to discuss the dynamics of managing the tyres and emphasised that Alonso’s experience and class was key in this situation.
“So basically, you could really see the interesting dynamics that develop there – everybody tried to manage his tyres to be strong in the parts where you can overtake. And this was quite interesting.
“You saw the huge experience, how [Alonso] managed his game there against someone that on paper has a quicker car.”
The Luxembourger also confessed that when there are overtakes in the final part of the race, you never know what might happen, referring to the moment when Perez overtook the Spaniard:
“You never know how much juice everybody has in his tank, so this is really dictating how it’s going to end.”
“Then going for the last time down the back straight to Turn 4, I think Fernando prepared it really well from the exit of Turn 1 and Turn 2, and he managed to overtake.”
Krack added that Aston Martin is a quality team that knows what they are doing after a tough couple of months.
“It shows that Aston Martin is a strong team. We know what we are doing — and that fills me with pride.”
With just two races left in the season, Fernando Alonso could be fighting for third place in the drivers’ championship, 28 points behind Lewis Hamilton, but he has to worry about who’s behind, with Norris and Sainz just 3 and 6 points away respectively.
Lance Stroll is in tenth place in the championship, just one point ahead of Pierre Gasly.
If Aston Martin is strong in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi, it could still overtake McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship.
