Fernando Alonso optimistic on his world championship chances
Just as he crashed out of the Belgian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso may also have crashed out of the fight for the Formula One world championship.
Alonso may regret riding the wet curb as he now finds himself 41 points behind championship leader and his good friend Lewis Hamilton. “It was not the Belgian Grand Prix we were expecting, that’s for sure,” said Alonso.
The man driving for Ferrari began 2010 in dominant fashion, romping to victory at the season’s curtain raiser in Bahrain. His pace and the margin of his victory had the other teams worried, but then it all went downhill for the Spaniard. In Australia, his hopes of winning back-to-back grands prix disappeared on the first lap, as he was facing the wrong way and fell to last after being hit by Jenson Button. Then in Malaysia, he suffered an engine failure.
The bad run did seem to come to an end, as he finished second in Spain and sixth in Monaco - where he started from last on the grid on a track where overtaking is difficult, but then it returned in Turkey, where he barely featured.
His form has been up and down, and in Canada, he was in contention to win the race, but finished third thanks to bad traffic. Then at the European Grand Prix, the untimely arrival of the safety car cost him second place and put him to the back of the grid, and then at Silverstone he finished outside of the points after serving a drive-through penalty.
The double world champion’s luck turned as Ferrari instructed his teammate Felipe Massa to let him through to win the German Grand Prix- where they were fined $100,000 for team orders- and he came second in Hungary. He found himself 20 points adrift before Spa, but that total has more than doubled yet, with six races remaining, he is not ruling himself out of the battle to win a third world crown.
“Going into these [remaining] races, I had said that whoever did the best job in them would take the title,” said Alonso. “With this points system and the way races swing one way or another, I am convinced we still have a significant chance. There are 150 points up for grabs, enough to turn the situation around. We must remain calm and concentrate, to try and make up the difference as soon as possible,” he added.
The 29-year old has the experience of winning world championships, and believes his luck will turn and help him in the title run-in.
“It seems that this year, the opening laps have not gone too well for me. I have always said - and I repeat it now - that in the course of the season, good luck and bad luck tend to balance one another out, so let’s hope that from now on it is payback time. The first final went badly, but there are still six to go,” Alonso said.
The Italian Grand Prix is next up for Ferrari, and on home territory they will be looking to bounce back, if they’re on the grid.
As a result of their team orders scandal, a World Motor Sport Council hearing just days before the Monza race could decide to hand out a heavier punishment. Not thinking about this, Alonso is focused on delivering a solid race. “At our home circuit we will have to do everything to avoid losing any more points. A good result here would be a great boost. If things go badly, it won’t be over but it would be a hard knock for team morale.”
He still maintains the hope.
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