Fernando Alonso’s misery at McLaren, thanks to the problem packed and uncompetitive power unit, has prompted the Spaniard to put himself on the market for a drive with a top team next year and inevitably a return to Ferrari would be one of several scenarios.
Asked during the FIA press conference, on day one of the Spanish Grand Prix weekend, if he would consider hiring Alonso, Ferrari team chief Maurizio Arrivabene replied, “You need to understand the spirit of our team this year.”
“We are really working as a team and the two guys, the two drivers, they are part – an integral part – of this team. We are so concentrated on what we are doing, we are working so hard, all together that the conversation about contracts is not a priority.”
“I tell you the truth. We are working well together, we are feeling very, very well together so we want to do our best, to work on the performance of the car and for us it’s… The contract is not a priority.”
“The atmosphere is great, why we have to start talking about something that is distracting us? We look each other in the eyes and we understand that we are a team,” added Arrivabene without really answering the question.
In Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen have a solid driver pairing, with five world titles between them. Experience is vast and the pair get on without a big fuss which is unusual when two big hitters share a pit garage in Formula 1.
Vettel is said to have a pre-agreement with Mercedes should things go pear shaped during the course of the season. But who would Mercedes ditch from their line-up should the need arise?
The question regarding Kimi Raikkonen’s future is an ongoing saga, but it seems that the Finn is well entrenched at Ferrari and as long as he is performing, at a reasonable level, why would Arrivabene axe him for Alonso?
An Alonso-Vettel pairing would be explosive and would disrupt the harmony which the team is striving hard to maintain.
Read the full story at GRAND PRIX 247
No comments:
Post a Comment