Alonso Expresses Frustration Over Strategy Disparity at British Grand Prix
Fernando Alonso, a two-time Formula 1 world champion, voiced his frustration after Aston Martin opted for a different race strategy compared to his teammate Lance Stroll during the British Grand Prix. The incident left Alonso finishing in ninth place at Silverstone, while Stroll managed to climb from 17th to seventh, showcasing a more effective approach under changing weather conditions.
Stroll’s performance was particularly impressive, as he briefly reached third place by making two well-timed pit stops. His first stop occurred under virtual safety car conditions on lap six, allowing him to move into the top 10 with soft tires against competitors on intermediates. He then made another stop on lap 10 when rain returned, switching to green-striped tires. This decision positioned him among the podium contenders, as several drivers on older intermediates pitted later, including Alonso, who dropped from sixth to 10th on lap 11.
Alonso’s second pit stop came on lap 37, where he became the first driver to switch to slicks. However, this move was executed too early, as most of the field, including Stroll, did not make their final pit stops until laps 41-44 of the 52-lap race.
“I think it was a very hard race to execute, and for us, it ended up being a missed opportunity,” Alonso said, reflecting on the race. “I’m not happy, obviously. We started seventh and finished ninth – we executed something badly.”
He highlighted that the team’s strategy for Stroll appeared more accurate, noting that Stroll had already made two pit stops before Alonso even made his first. “Lance pitted twice before I even made my first stop, which put him up in third. That’s why sometimes I find it hard to understand, because we have another car giving us information, and if that car is in third place, I don’t know how we can’t use that information from our side of the garage. It’s in-house.”
Alonso also emphasized the importance of data in such conditions, stating that while he has experience, he relies heavily on the team’s input. “I have the experience, but I don’t have the data. When they call me to pit, I pit. I can feed back the track conditions, but I cannot do much more than that.”
He criticized the notion that drivers alone make decisions in these scenarios. “Whoever says that the driver makes [the decisions in] these conditions and wins the races, it’s bullshit. This is just a data-driven race with all the parameters we have in the car.”
Despite the challenges, Alonso acknowledged the difficulty of making strategic calls in mixed-weather conditions. “The first stop was difficult to read, I understand that. I think Hamilton, Russell, Gasly, Sainz, myself, we all stopped on one lap. Obviously, we were P5, P6, P7, so it’s very difficult to gamble in that moment of the race.”
Aston Martin boss Andy Cowell addressed the issue, denying any strategy problems with Alonso’s side of the garage. He explained that the team’s strategy is centralized due to the single pit box, and that the differing starting positions allowed for varied approaches. “I don’t think there’s a problem. The strategy is done centrally because there’s only one pit box.”
Cowell admitted that, in hindsight, it would have been better for Alonso to follow Stroll’s strategy. “We went early with Fernando. With hindsight, too early. But we very nearly stopped both cars that same lap.”
The Silverstone weekend left Aston Martin in eighth place in the constructors’ championship, with Stroll and Alonso ranked 12th and 14th in the drivers’ standings respectively.
