Fernando Alonso surprised the F1 world the day after the Hungarian Grand Prix when it was announced he would join Aston Martin for the 2023 season. Budapest, after the announcement of the departure of Sebastian Vettel.
Mike Krack, team principal, says talks went quickly because the driver was well aware of the team’s plans at Silverstone.
“I think there was not so much work of conviction necessary” Krack told Sky F1. « I think Fernando has a very big network in Formula 1. He knows more or less what is going on in each team.
« I think he sees a clear role in our project, with the people we hire with our infrastructure, but also not forgetting the amount of people, good people that we already had on board. So from that point of view, there was no work of conviction. »
Krack expects ‘uncomfortable questions’ from Alonso
On the other hand, Krack assures that the arrival of Alonso was only considered after the departure of Vettel, and that it was not the possibility of recruiting the Spaniard who pushed to dismiss the quadruple world champion.
« We were always clear that we wanted to continue with Sebastian. Our plans were to continue with Sebastian, we always said that, and an alternative only presented itself when Sebastian said that he was going to stop. »
Krack isn’t worried about the possibility of Alonso being very critical of the team. The Spaniard is known for his public outbursts towards his teams, but Krack expects him to shake things up internally: « He’s a champion. There’s a reason they are and that’s because they’re very competitive. »
« They ask the right questions, they push teams to their limits, and we think it’s important to have someone like that to ask uncomfortable questions. It pushes us a little further. So I think for the team, it’s the good thing to have people like that. »
Did you miss our previous article...
https://formulaone.news/aston-martin/alpine-blamed-for-not-honoring-promise-made-to-oscar-piastri
