Fernando Alonso says it was “not tough to maintain motivated” in a tricky 2024 Formulation 1 season with Aston Martin as a result of “I’m used to not having the perfect automotive”.
The 43-year-old comes into the ultimate spherical of the season in Abu Dhabi ninth within the standings on 68 factors and with no podiums to his credit score in a tough 12 months for Aston Martin.
It’s a far cry from what he and the crew managed in 2023, when Alonso completed fourth within the championship on 206 factors with a haul of eight podiums.
Although Aston has taken a step again with its AMR24 challenger, Alonso says the condensed calendar meant it was straightforward to maintain motivated by recent objectives.
He additionally famous that his automotive troubles didn’t put on on him as a result of he believes the one time in his racing profession he had the perfect equipment was with Toyota within the 2018/19 World Endurance Championship.
“It was not tough to maintain motivated as a result of each two weeks you will have an opportunity to perform a little bit higher than the earlier weekend,” Alonso advised the media, together with Crash.web, on Thursday in Abu Dhabi.
“So, this calendar does not mean you can relaxation or to have time to suppose, you’re frequently racing.
“So, it was not tough to get motivation. And, in a method, I am used to, not having the perfect automotive.
“I believe I’ve one time the perfect automotive in Toyota in WEC in 25 years of racing. So, I am all the time motivated.”
The 2018/19 WEC marketing campaign, dubbed the ‘tremendous season’, noticed Alonso and Toyota 5 of the eight rounds and the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice – albeit in an period through which the Japanese marque was the one main producer competing within the sequence’ prime class.
Fernando Alonso, Toyota Gazoo Racing, 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans
© XPB Photos
Regardless of persevering with to search out motivation all through a tricky 2024 season, Alonso admits he’s “comfortable that it’s over” after this weekend as a result of he seems like Aston has been “preventing for nothing” within the final half of the marketing campaign.
“I believe it is very lengthy season for everyone, for the mechanics, for everybody within the crew,” he added.
“24 races is ultra-demanding, particularly the final triple-header that we did. And I believe when the championship can be over, like Max received in Vegas, for us it is in all probability after summer season, we had been fifth within the constructors’ championship, no threats from behind, nothing to do in entrance of us.
“So, the remaining seven or eight races are a bit of bit lengthy, since you are preventing for nothing.
“So, we attempt to be taught in regards to the automotive for subsequent 12 months’s mission. However aside of that, there may be not a lot to do.
“I am comfortable to take the winter break now and begin from zero subsequent 12 months, and hopefully extra aggressive.
“The motivation is completely different while you end Abu Dhabi and also you begin subsequent 12 months’s automotive and subsequent 12 months’s simulator work and all the pieces, than simply coming right here figuring out that we are going to be between ninth and twelfth right here.”
