Fernando Alonso delivered in front of the Brazilian spectators, who had been looking for a close finish throughout the season. His spine-chilling defense against Sergio Perez was a reminder of Fernando’s racing brilliance that hasn’t faded yet. The ‘youngest’ driver in F1 was able to clinch his 8th podium finish of the season after some disappointing sessions.
There was a gap of only 0.053 seconds, which is generally not feasible to perceive, but Fernando Alonso wasn’t in for a podium finish as he fought Sergio Perez’s vastly superior RB19 to get the final laugh. Fernando Alonso came in third during the Brazilian GP.
Fernando Alonso compares Perez’s win to iconic 2005 San Marino triumph
Sergio Perez, who has been walking on tight rope in the last few races to keep his 2nd place while defending against Lewis Hamilton, was applauded by Red Bull boss and Helmut Marko. While Marko let us in on the factors that led to Fernando’s triumph, the Spaniard is elated about his recent podium as he fondly talks about one of his special races.
The San Marino 2005 GP is one of the most iconic moments of the first world championship for young Alonso, he was battling the vastly superior Ferraris in his Renault, and that was when he showed us what defending meant. Fernando showed his unbeatable tactics as he fought off a roaring Michael Schumacher for 12 laps consistently. He was able to win the race, making it three in a row, and beat the Ferraris. He became nostalgic and started comparing his recent achievement to his 2005 GP victory.
“It was easier in 2005 because it was non-DRS,” Fernando Alonso said contemplating about defending Perez. “So that was probably easier. Now with the DRS, it seems a little bit different, and you have to play things a little bit differently as well. If in 2005 you lose the position, then it’s bye-bye, you cannot recover and here I had another chance.
“It has been introduced to provide a little bit better show, and today is a good example of that because you get overtaken two laps from the end and then you have another chance, especially here in Brazil.”
Horner applauds Perez-Alonso battle
The decision to call Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez’s battle the best moment of the race seems unanimous. Even Christian Horner couldn’t hold himself from praising the hard racing between the two talented drivers. Although his driver lost a podium finish Horner was still satisfied with the race performance and overall entertainment.
“Aston Martin took a good step forward. We saw that they ran with very low downforce in the race, and it seemed to work,” Horner said. “They were very fast on the straights. And I think Checo obviously had to wear his tires a lot, starting from ninth position in the grid and encountering traffic, and he did it very well.
“In the software, especially at the end, you could see that ‘Checo’ was faster, but Fernando is a clever old fox and positions the car very, very well. And it was a great race between the two, it was really entertaining to see the two wheel-to-wheel like that.”
What are your thoughts about Formula 1 and its use of DRS? Do you think that the new system has made racing much more fun, or would you prefer the old rules of the sport?
