Fernando Alonso bemoans reliability issues after Singapore retirement

Fernando Alonso believes that reliability issues have cost him around 60 points in the standings this year in Formula 1.

The Spaniard was driving supremely well at the Singapore Grand Prix, as he has done for much of this season, but he found his Alpine letting go before the end of the race and leaving him without anything to show for his efforts.

Indeed, team-mate Esteban Ocon suffered similar fate as his car also went pop before the chequered flag and that, combined with McLaren earning a double points finish, means that Alpine now sit fifth in the Constructors’ standings when they were in fourth.

Alonso, meanwhile, is 9th in the Drivers’ championship but believes he should be much higher, suggesting that reliability issues and whatnot have cost him around 60 points this season:

“I think it was around minus 50 [points], so now we have another eight.

“So it’s minus 58 points or minus 60 in a year, which is really unacceptable on my car.

“If you put me 60 points more in the standings, and you reduce 10 or something to the others, because you would take points from those as well, my championship will look much better and close even to Mercedes.

“So that is probably more accurate of the performance that we are putting this year, which I’m very proud of. Even today, the top five or top six we were fighting for. But the standings doesn’t translate to performance.”

Alonso would find himself in P7 if he had that extra 60 points, and Alpine would be a lot better off in the Constructors’ championship if that was the case.

Instead, though, they are four points behind McLaren, and will just hope the momentum can swing back their way in the final five races.