Fernando Alonso believes Honda are ahead of the game when compared to Mercedes at the same stage of Formula 1’s V6 turbo era and is confident that next year they will be battling at the sharp end of the grid.
Alonso told media ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix, “If you can imagine we are in our second year, if you see the power we have, the deployment we have and the reliability we have, I don’t think there have been many teams in this position in their second season, maybe Mercedes and we are maybe ahead of Mercedes in the second year.”
“I am impressed with what Honda is doing with the little time they had. The biggest problem was the starting point, we were a bit behind last year. It has changed a lot I think we are definitely moving forward and in the right direction. Last year the project was not mature enough because the power unit was not ready.”
“Everyone remembers here we had 105 positions penalty between Jenson and myself which was a sign we were not ready to compete so we are a little bit behind compared to the other manufacturers, but in terms of organisation and on the chassis-side we are comparable to the top teams, which is a good sign.”
“Now we are in a situation which is much better than last year that makes us more confident than about next year. Last year we needed to solve many problems, now we need solve just one only, which is easier.”
Asked how he is motivating Honda to sustain development, Alonso revealed, “I am trying to push everyone. I am aware of their hard work and I understand that they are doing their best.”
“They are working 24 hours in Sakura, they are bringing all their knowledge from people, but unfortunately in F1 there isn’t a magic button you can touch from one day to the other you can reach a certain level,” added the double F1 world champion.
Read the full story at GRAND PRIX 247
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