When Sebastian Vettel announced over last season’s summer break that he would be retiring at the end of the year, Aston Martin faced the difficult task of replacing one of the most talented drivers of all time.
Impressively, the team managed to tempt Fernando Alonso away from Alpine to join the team, with the appealing project that is backed by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll being enough to convince the Spaniard to make the switch.
Aging like a fine wine, Alonso has been able to take full advantage of the AMR23’s impressive performance already this season, scoring his 99th podium in F1 on his Aston Martin debut.
Alonso’s wait for another win in F1 will reach a decade in May despite his clear talent, with his spells with McLaren and Alpine never really allowing the 41-year-old to battle for race wins.
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Aston Martin ambassador Pedro de la Rosa has now claimed that a win for Alonso is certainly on its way, with the Spaniard looking as competitive as he did back in his title winning past.
“If it’s not this year, it will be next year,” he told Reuters when asked about Alonso’s chances of winning a race with Aston Martin.
“The expectation that Fernando’s podium in Bahrain has given the team, Formula 1 in general… it’s beautiful to watch.
“What really impresses me about Fernando is the fact that he’s 41 and he’s exactly the same Fernando with the same hunger as I met in 2007.
“There’s no difference whatsoever in his approach, how hard he’s working and how hard he’s trying and pushing everyone.
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“Physically he’s young, he’s been taking care of himself and he’s pushing incredibly hard in every little detail – not only on the car, on the team, but also physically on his training regime, on his diet. He’s a very complete athlete.”
Alonso will start the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix from P2 and with Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc both starting in the bottom ten, Alonso could be in for a win this weekend.
Should the Spaniard be able to get the better of Sergio Perez, he could be the favourite to win the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.