After a hard-fought race, Fernando secured his 100th Formula One podium finish around the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. Hear Fernando, Lance and Team Principal Mike Krack from him as they reflect on an eventful night…
Fernando and Lance made up ground from their top-five grid positions at the start of the Grand Prix. Fernando got a better launch than polesitter Sergio Perez and led the race’s opening stages. Lance pulled off a spectacular pass on Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz to work his way into fourth.
Fernando lost the lead to Perez a few laps later but was initially able to keep up with him. He later slipped back behind the second Red Bull of Max Verstappen as the race progressed. He eventually secured a third position and became the sixth driver in history to take a landmark 100 F1 podium finish.
However, it was a mixed bag for the team as Lance had to retire due to a mechanical problem in the early stages of the race after running so well in the early stages.
Fernando, Lance and Mike gave their thoughts as the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend ended…
Fernando Alonso
I am happy with the result tonight and our second podium. We showed that we could be the second-fastest team and had a good pace throughout the race.
Initially, it was my mistake with the position on the grid, but we pushed to make up that time.
Coming into this weekend, we were not sure exactly where we would be, so this is good news for us going into the next few races. I am looking forward to Australia next.
Lance Stroll
Retaining from the Grand Prix after such a promising weekend was disappointing. I had a great start and enjoyed overtaking Carlos outside of Turn 13.
We were in a good position on track and having fun pushing, but then I started experiencing reduced power and got the call to stop the car. It is not the result we wanted, but we leave Saudi Arabia knowing that we have a very competitive car and will pick up the fight next time in Australia.
Mike Krack
It is very satisfying to score our second podium of the year with Fernando here in Jeddah. It is Fernando’s 100th career podium, which is a very impressive milestone.
It is a real shame that Lance was forced to retire early with an energy recovery issue, the cause of which is still being investigated because he had a strong pace and would surely have scored big points tonight as well.
The car has been competitive throughout the weekend, and we showed a strong race pace again tonight. Full credit to everyone in the team for their hard work this week.
Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team best pictures:

Portrait, Helmets, Jeddah Corniche Circuit, 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

Portrait, media pen, Jeddah Corniche Circuit, 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

action, Jeddah Corniche Circuit, 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP, Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR23, leads Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-23

VIPs, Portrait, TS-Live, Jeddah Corniche Circuit, 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team, with Patrice Evra

Media, Portrait, Jeddah Corniche Circuit, 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP, Lance Stroll, Aston Martin F1 Team, is interviewed

Portrait, Podium, Jeddah Corniche Circuit, 2023 Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team, provisionally 3rd position, with the trophy
Related Articles