On the El Larguero podcast after the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso discussed the dominance of Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing.
Red Bull have won all 14 races of the 2023 season up to that point, and their winning streak extended to 15 races if we count their victory at the 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The last time Red Bull didn’t win was in Brazil, back in November 2022, when George Russell secured is maiden F1 win.
However, since the Austrian Grand Prix in July 2022, Red Bull have secured victory in 24 out of the last 25 races. Max Verstappen has won 10 races in a row in 2023 and remains undefeated since the 2023 Miami Grand Prix in May.
Here is the transcription of Alonso’s interview with El Larguero, translated from spanish to english :
El Larguero : The new rules of Formula 1, because initially those new rules were meant to make it interesting, at least for the top 6, 7, 8 cars to be as close as possible, right? In the end, that has been achieved, but of course, Red Bull has found some kind of magic formula that puts them far ahead. Is that good or bad, Fernando? How do we interpret this?
Alonso : Well, there are two ways to look at it. One is that the new regulations have indeed brought some positives. We can follow the cars much closer than we used to, with less turbulence and dirty air when following the car in front of you. I believe we also have a tightly packed grid, apart from the top two cars that everyone is interested in. But if you look at the third car on the grid, let’s say not Red Bull, it’s sometimes very difficult to even make it to Q1 because there are about 16 cars within four tenths. So, in that sense, the equality that was sought has been achieved.
On the other hand, something has failed because out of the last 25 races, 24 Grand Prix have been won by Red Bull. I don’t think that was part of anyone’s plan. I don’t know what these people eat or drink; they’re the best in everything. It’s not just having the fastest car; they have the fastest driver, a driver who makes no mistakes, they have faster pit stops, better starts, and the best strategies. At the moment, they have no weaknesses, and all the teams are working hard to find any.
Q : If you had a Red Bull in your hands right now, I know you don’t want it because you want the Aston Martin, but do you think you would be leading the championship?
Alonso : Well, I don’t know; I don’t really stop to think about it. What I’m sure of is that Verstappen is doing a superior job to the rest, and we have to accept that with humility. You always have confidence in yourself, believing that with the same car, you can beat anyone, and you feel fast and everything. But then you also see that, well, as I said, he hasn’t made any mistakes. He has 10 consecutive wins, and they haven’t been easy wins. It’s been 10 races with rain, pit stops, red flags, interruptions, and he hasn’t failed once. So, yes, the Red Bull is a good car, but it’s the combination of Verstappen and Red Bull that’s making the difference.
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