The Spanish Formula 1 driver decides not to attack his teammate during the Grand Prix held in his country of origin
In what could have been a disputed and aggressive end of the race in Barcelona, Fernando Alonso opted for an exemplary and prudent position, where the priority was not individual glory, but the integrity of the team and the affection for its followers. Rather than attack his teammate Lance Stroll on the last lap of the Barcelona Grand Prix, Alonso preferred to greet his Spanish fans from the distance of the DRS.
This behavior falls under a difficult day for the Spanish pilot, that he had qualified in ninth position for his home race due to a damaged floor requiring urgent repair. This situation meant that, for the first time this season, he was outranked by his teammate, Lance Stroll.
Respect for his teammate and the team from the Spanish pilot
In the last 10 laps of the Grand Prix, Alonso managed to get closer to his teammate, even reaching the range of the DRS. However, instead of looking to overtake, the Asturian driver sent a message to his team: “Tell Lance not to worry, I just want to gain distance from the cars behind in case of rain or any other setback.”
Finally, Alonso crossed the finish line with a difference of eight tenths with Stroll, deciding to say goodbye to his fans instead of attacking his teammate in the last lap. The Spanish driver showed great maturity and respect towards his teammate and team, taking into account that a difference of one position would not significantly alter the team’s total score.
Analyzing the competition and team performance
alonso explained: “I think it was a little faster, like a tenth or two and had newer tires with 10 laps to go. But when you approach another car, you have some turbulent air and I already damaged one floor yesterday and I didn’t want to damage another one today. And she also didn’t want him to damage the floor defending. For us it was the same sixth and seventh or seventh and sixth, the same points, so taking the car home was the right choice.
This Barcelona Grand Prix scored only the second time this season that Alonso failed to get on the podium. When asked if the ‘wave of hype’ had lost strength and if he expected a repetition in Canada, the pilot was blunt in his response. “It won’t happen again,” he insisted. “This is our last race without podiums.” Nonetheless, it was a disappointing race for Alonso, who had to admit that his AMR23 just didn’t have the pace over the weekend.