Alonso takes aim at F1 broadcast over “grumpy guy” portrayal

Fernando Alonso has taken goal at Formulation One Administration [FOM] for portraying him as a “grumpy man” after a staff radio rant over the efficiency of his Aston Martin throughout Friday’s observe for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was broadcast.

The 2-time Formulation 1 world champion has an extended checklist of well-known staff radio messages the place he has voiced his displeasure, most notably when with McLaren through the ill-fated Honda years in 2015-17.

Frustration has been rising given Aston Martin’s struggles in breaking into the highest 10 this season, particularly after its robust begin to final yr’s marketing campaign, with Alonso telling his staff: “Worst automobile ever, and worst visitors preparation ever. Subsequent time I’ll do the out-lap myself.”

Regardless of his lack of enjoyment with the AMR24, the Spaniard took eighth on the grid with a stable qualifying efficiency at Yas Marina Circuit, giving Alonso and the Silverstone-based outfit the prospect to complete the yr on a excessive.

Requested how he pulled off his qualifying efficiency after his frustration in observe, Alonso replied: “However at the moment I stated that I had a superb feeling. So yeah, we began on the flawed foot, for positive, the automobile was very disconnected entrance and rear. They weren’t speaking to one another.

“We made some set-up adjustments in a single day. We did not reach bettering the efficiency, as a result of FP3, we had been seventeenth and nineteenth. So nonetheless not there. So we made additional adjustments earlier than qualifying, and plainly we discovered the window the place the automobile is happier.

“So, these automobiles are so essential, the working window is so slim that it’s not straightforward to search out it. Plainly we did it earlier than quali. Joyful to begin eighth, however it is going to be a troublesome race tomorrow.”

On whether or not the struggles in observe marked the bottom level of the season, Alonso levelled criticism at FOM for its broadcast selections.

“It was a nasty visitors,” he stated. “It was a frustration constructing. However, as regular, some feedback are good, some feedback are dangerous, however FOM has this repair with me, with dangerous feedback – however I am pleased with that. It is their job.

“Yesterday I had some optimistic issues [to say] as properly however as I stated, FOM, they must promote that I am the grumpy man. They tried for a few years and they won’t succeed.

“I did not have a superb time [in practice] however I feel all these conversations are very non-public together with your engineer. You are attempting generally various things. You talk about some out-lap preparations that possibly I do not agree with the engineers.

“They wish to strive anyway, it would not work. So that you inform them, ‘Wow, you recognize this – we knew it beforehand’, or one thing like that.

“However when you do not have all that context behind and also you simply put the radio message, it is simply flawed. However it’s the method they do it.”