Alonso pessimistic over Austria GP chances with upgraded car: 'We need more time'

According to Fernando Alonso, the Austrian Grand Prix may not provide the ideal conditions for Aston Martin to optimise its recent upgrades fully.

Aston Martin introduced more aggressive sidepod bodywork and a revised floor design for its AMR23 during the Canadian GP, which helped Alonso secure his sixth podium finish of the season, finishing second to Max Verstappen.

However, Alonso believes that Aston Martin's efforts to completely understand the effects of their updates may be hindered by the upcoming Austrian GP, which will be the second sprint round of the season following Azerbaijan.

The new format includes a qualifying session on Friday to determine the grid for the main race, while the sprint event consists of a qualifying shootout and a race on Saturday.

With only one free practice session available on Friday afternoon, teams have limited time to fine-tune their setups and validate any car upgrades.

Alonso anticipates that this compressed timetable will make it challenging for Aston Martin to exploit the potential of their latest improvements fully.

Drivers

1. Max Verstappen (NED) 195 pts, 2. Sergio Perez (MEX) 126, 3. Fernando Alonso (ESP) 117, 4. Lewis Hamilton (GBR) 102, 5. Carlos Sainz (ESP) 68, 6. George Russell (GBR) 65, 7. Charles Leclerc (MON) 54, 8. Lance Stroll (CAN) 37, 9. Esteban Ocon (FRA) 29, 10. Pierre Gasly (FRA) 15, 11. Lando Norris (GBR) 12, 12. Alexander Albon (THA) 7, 13. Nico Hulkenberg (GER) 6, 14. Oscar Piastri (AUS) 5, 15. Valtteri Bottas (FIN) 5, 16. Zhou Guanyu (CHN) 4, 17. Yuki Tsunoda (JPN) 2, 18. Kevin Magnussen (DEN) 2, 19. Nyck de Vries (NED) 0, 20. Logan Sargeant (USA) 0

Constructors

1. Red Bull 321 pts, 2. Mercedes 167, 3. Aston Martin-Mercedes 154, 4. Ferrari 122, 5. Alpine-Renault