Fernando Alonso’s intriguing F1 2024 claim could spark more Aston Martin success

Fernando Alonso has promised to bring more success to Aston Martin in F1 2024, claiming “everything will just be easier” in his second season with the team.

Alonso enjoyed his most productive season in a decade in 2023 after arriving at Aston Martin from Alpine, claiming six podium finishes in eight races for his new team at the start of the season.

The Silverstone outfit faded as the season progressed, but Alonso recovered to add two more podiums to his collection at Zandvoort and Interlagos, where he came out on top after a thrilling battle with Red Bull driver Sergio Perez for third place.

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With Aston Martin’s 2023 car set to form the basis of the 2024 design, Alonso is excited about chasing more success next season – and he believes that his ever-growing experience with the team will allow them to get straight down to business in 2024.

He said: “This being my second year with the team will help.

“I don’t need to do many of the things I had to do at the start of this year: I don’t need to put names to all the faces; I don’t need to do seat fittings, learn the terminology and do all of the other accommodations that have to happen when you’re a new driver in a team.

“Everything will just be easier. We can focus more on performance and preparation for the first couple of races right from day one.

“We also have a very strong baseline to work with from 2023. When we arrive at a race, the work we do will be an optimisation of what we did this year.

“The 2022 car was perhaps not good enough as a reference for us this year, and on many weekends, we were starting from zero. 2024, it should be easier in terms of preparation, and we can focus more on detail.”

Asked if his 2023 success will alter his expectations for next season, he explained: “I don’t think it’s going to change much because there are too many unknowns every season – anything can happen in Formula 1.

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“When we hit the track in winter testing or race one next year, I think we will see how things are and be very open with whatever targets we set for the Championship.

“We will hopefully be competitive again, fighting for regular points and podiums, hopefully for our first win – that would be the dream – but we cannot underestimate the challenge.

“We exceeded expectations this year because expectations were low. That’s why this season feels amazing.

“If we set expectations too high – unrealistically high – there’s a danger of the opposite happening.”

Alonso remains without a victory since the winning the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix for Ferrari.

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