Fernando Alonso's first start for Aston Martin saw him claim the 99th podium finish of his career and his first in Bahrain since winning the race in 2010; team-mate Lance Stroll ensured a double points finish for the Silverstone-based outfit by bringing his car home sixth
Sunday 5 March 2023 18:56, UK
Fernando Alonso revelled in an unexpectedly bright start to his time with Aston Martin after securing third place in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
It was the 99th podium finish of the two-time world champion's career and his first in Bahrain since winning the race in 2010, on his first start for Ferrari.
Aston Martin had shown promise in both pre-season testing and throughout the weekend at the Sakhir circuit, with Alonso qualifying fifth, but even then he admitted the podium came out of the blue.
"It's the perfect start for this project," Alonso said. "We didn't expect to be that competitive. The aim in 2023 was to be in the mix in the midfield, maybe leading the midfield and getting close to the top three teams eventually.
"Even a podium was maybe even not on the radar in 2023, and we've found ourselves with the second-best car in Bahrain over the whole weekend.
"It's a bit of a surprise, but we are extremely happy with the job done at Silverstone in the factory, so let's enjoy this moment and build from here.
"I had the same feeling from testing that it was too good to be true and you're always expecting there will be something will give you a step back and you will get back to reality - but the performance seems real."
Alonso's third place marked only the second time Aston Martin had finished on the podium in 50 Grand Prix starts, with the other of those being secured by his predecessor Sebastian Vettel when finishing second at last year's Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
The 41-year-old Spaniard, who joined the Silverstone-based outfit from Alpine on a multi-year contract, emphasised there is still work to do though and believes the upcoming races in Saudi Arabia on March 19 and Australia next month will offer more evidence of how competitive the AMR23 truly is.
"In Bahrain, we were strong in things maybe we won't find in Jeddah and Australia, but if we are strong in the next two races, I think we will have a very good 2023," Alonso said.
"The important point is the new Aston Martin is a new car, a new project - this is just the beginning. This is just a starting point, not the finished car.
"Some of the top teams kept the philosophy they had last year...for us, it was much more difficult - we had to change 95 per cent of the car.
"For us, there is much more to learn from the car and more to come on our side. I've got full trust in our team, they know what to do, so hopefully we can improve."
Alonso's podium finish was part of a double points finish for Aston Martin, with Lance Stroll overcoming lingering pain from his pre-season injury to come home in sixth.
The Canadian missed testing due to injuring both wrists in an accident sustained when riding his bike, with the right wrist requiring minor surgery.
Stroll was delighted to end the weekend in Bahrain with that result, having undergone as many as 10 hours a day with his osteopath during his recovery period to ensure he would be ready to go in the first Grand Prix of 2023.
"It's been an insane journey," Stroll told Sky Sports. "The last two weeks has just been the most insane two weeks of my life.
"It's a terrible time to crash on a bicycle and doctors were telling me maybe Australia, maybe Baku. The light at the end of the tunnel was very hard to see, but I had an incredible medical team who helped me along the way.
"There is a list of people I could name and without them I couldn't be here, and well done to everyone back at the factory for building this incredible car which is a pleasure to drive."
The double top-10 for Aston Martin came despite Stroll bumping the rear of Alonso's car heading into Turn 4 on the opening lap, with both cars emerging unscathed from that incident.
"It was our lucky day for many things, with this contact and to get both cars with strong points [finishes]," Alonso said. "I'm very happy for the team because they deserve it."
