Why Fernando Alonso disagrees with Fred Vasseur on 2025 F1 season outlook
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The opening phases of a Formula 1 season are always crucial for teams as they assess the competitive landscape and gauge their position relative to rivals.
In the previous season, it was Red Bull who initially set the pace, dominating the early races. However, a shift occurred after Lando Norris claimed victory in Miami, altering the competitive dynamic as teams began to challenge the frontrunners. Mercedes also experienced a resurgence, with their new car design making significant strides, allowing both George Russell and Lewis Hamilton to secure two victories each.
For a period, it appeared that at least four teams were in contention for wins, particularly as Ferrari made substantial progress with their car. This effort resulted in victories for Carlos Sainz in Melbourne and Charles Leclerc in Monaco, signaling Ferrari's return to form.
However, one team that struggled to maintain its momentum was Aston Martin. Unlike the previous season, when Fernando Alonso had helped the team secure eight podium finishes, Aston Martin found themselves unable to replicate that success. Tensions mounted between Aston Martin's engineers and team owner Lawrence Stroll, as mounting pressure for results became more intense.
Looking ahead to the 2025 season, Fernando Alonso has explained that Aston Martin is taking a new approach, having learned from the challenges faced by other top teams in the previous season. Speaking at the recent F1 75 live press conference, Fernando Alonso outlined his thoughts on the upcoming Formula 1 season.
While Ferrari's team principal, Frederic Vasseur, has suggested that the competitive picture for the 2025 season will be largely determined by the early races, Fernando Alonso disagrees, expressing his belief that the season's outcome will not be decided so quickly.
The former Ferrari driver expressed the belief that the tests at the 5.412-kilometre Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir and the first races of the season would be less significant than in previous years. He noted that, in the past two seasons, he had observed that the early stages of the season were not as predictive as they once seemed. He pointed out that, in earlier years, starting the season well often ensured continuity, but in the last two years, there had been major shifts, such as McLaren's transformation in 2023, Mercedes' improvements the following year, and now, Haas’ progress.
The two-time F1 world champion further emphasized that if a team managed to find the right setup by race nine, the long season provided plenty of time for adjustments and improvements all the way through race 24. Given this, Alonso indicated that he was taking a more relaxed approach to the preseason, noting that a successful year for his team would mean, at the very least, matching their achievements from the previous year. He recalled that his team had finished fifth in the Constructors’ standings, acknowledging that they may not have been the fastest of the fifth-place teams at the end of the season, but he believed they had to aim to return to and maintain those performance levels throughout the season.
Fernando Alonso’s primary issue with the Aston Martin car may finally be addressed in the 2025 season. Aston Martin found themselves in a challenging position in 2024, ultimately finishing as the fifth-best team of the year, largely due to the direction they took with their development approach.
The team spent much of the latter part of the season using the races as a testing ground, with both Alonso and Lance Stroll conducting back-to-back tests with different floor configurations. This experimental approach meant that many of the final races of the season became opportunities to test out various components rather than focusing on race performance.
Throughout the season, both Alonso and Stroll consistently expressed concerns regarding the cornering stability of their AMR24. Alonso, in particular, emphasized that the issue was a “fundamental” one that the team had to contend with. The lack of stability in corners became a recurring challenge that significantly affected their performance.
However, Aston Martin’s team principal, Andy Cowell, has expressed confidence that the stability problems which plagued the AMR24 have been resolved with their 2025 car. This optimism comes after a season in which Aston Martin finished a substantial 374 points behind Mercedes, and Cowell believes that the changes made for 2025 will put them in a much stronger position.
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