Fernando Alonso finished second in Formula One’s new Overtake Award rankings in 2021, just losing out to Sebastian Vettel. The Spaniard believes there is a reason behind his ability to make so many moves in Grands Prix.
Fernando Alonso attributes his success to Alpine’s heightened competitiveness on Sundays rather than Saturdays, which helped him become one of the best overtakers in 2021.
Sebastian Vettel took first position in F1’s new Overtake Award, with the Spaniard finishing second. During the season, Vettel completed 132 overtakes, while Alonso completed 128.
While Alonso concedes that he would prefer to be at the front of the grid and avoid making as many moves, he believes that the difference in the Alpine’s performance levels between qualifying and race pace contributed to his overtaking total.
“I would love to start a little bit further up, and make no overtakings, and be in the top three constantly,” Alonso joked to media including RacingNews365.com.
“But it seems that on Sundays we are a little bit more competitive than Saturdays. That was a general rule this year.
“We started making more of a single lap compared [to] the race pace, and maybe that’s also a consequence of this number [of overtakes].”
F1 races after comeback have been “good fun”
Alonso is looking forward to returning to Formula One in 2021 after a two-year hiatus, and believes that having the possibility to overtake ensures that races are always entertaining.
“It’s been no different than any other year,” the two-time World Champion stated when asked how much he’s liked racing since his return.
“Obviously, when you are in the midfield, there is a little bit more action compared to the front, [which is] not always on television.
“There are a couple of races [where] they are quite fun, and you are a little bit lonely there in some others. But I think it has been always the same, and as long as there is an opportunity and the circuit provides some good spots for overtaking, it’s normally good fun.”
Alonso finished 10th in the World Championship in 2021, just ahead of teammate Esteban Ocon, who finished 11th, and Alpine finished fifth in the Constructors’ Championship.
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