Everything went wrong the weekend of the Australian GP.
Fernando Alonso could have achieved his best result in recent years in Formula 1 at the Australian Grand Prix, where his Alpine A522 had pace to stay ahead of the Mercedes in the top five. However, the reliability failed again… for a part that costs two euros!
The O-ring “twisted” and with it the oil leaked out, causing the problem that ended with Alonso crashing into the barriers at a time when he was doing a magical lap. He said that even he could have fought for pole position, although perhaps he was a bit optimistic, but we could have seen him in the top 4.
VIDEO: Charles Leclerc shines at the Australian GP
“It was an O-ring on the oil seal,” Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer told The Race website. “The O-ring got screwed up and the oil leaked. We have a way to. He said there could even be a fight for pole, although maybe he was a bit optimistic, but we could have seen him in the top four.
“The solution was an O-ring change,” added Szafnauer. According to the aforementioned website, this board costs around two euros, a minimum price for a very expensive cost in sports.
With this, Alonso was forced to start from tenth place on the grid on Sunday. In a circuit like Albert Park, without major incidents or safety cars at the right time, the Spaniard knew that the podium was difficult, but he risked going out on hard rubber and carrying out the opposite strategy to that of the leaders.
With this strategy, Alonso was unable to take advantage of the safety car due to Vettel’s accident on lap 23, as the medium tires he would have had to mount would have worn out very quickly. Yes, he entered the pits on lap 39, coinciding with the virtual safety car for Verstappen’s retirement. But he returned to the track in a car train and excessively worn his tires.
In the end, the Asturian driver had to return to the pits to make a second stop and finished in the seventeenth and last position. After the race, he said he could have been on the podium… and he didn’t fail: if he had qualified in the position he was entitled to (in the top four), with Verstappen’s retirement he could have taken Russell’s place (3rd) .
“Again we are out of the points, you are speechless,” Alonso summed up after the Australian GP. As the two-time F1 champion also said, there are still 20 races to go, and good luck should come at some point…
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