On Track

9 Jul 2023

The Debrief by Aramco: British GP

Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One® Team leaves the British Grand Prix third in the Constructors' Championship after Fernando secures points in our home race.

A challenging day for the team at Silverstone Circuit that yields six points as Fernando battles to P7 from P9 on the grid. Lance, meanwhile, finishes out of the points after a late penalty.

The clouds hung thick and low over our home circuit but rain didn't materialise during a Grand Prix that saw a late Virtual Safety Car-turned-Safety Car, which provided an opportune time for both of our drivers to pit.

Fernando began the race on Used Medium tyres and made his way up into the top five having forgone the chance to pit before the Safety Car was deployed. He then took the chance to switch to Used Soft tyres and ended the race seventh by the chequered flag.

Lance also began the race on Used Medium tyres and he took the chance to pit for Used Soft tyres when the Virtual Safety Car emerged. However, he fell out of points contention late on and was given a five-second penalty for his role in a collision towards the closing stages of the race.

Read what Fernando, Lance and Team Principal Mike Krack said after our 10th-consecutive points-scoring race of 2023.

Sunday

The Grand Prix

F. Alonso

FL: 1:31.338

P14

L. Stroll

FL: 1:31.508

"We maximised the race today and took seventh place in a difficult weekend for the team. I think we managed our strategy well and made the right calls during the race. We need to analyse the weekend as a whole, but we aren't worried about this result." Fernando praises the strategy team's calls during the race after coming home in points. Despite a lack of competitiveness compared to the front-runners, he says there is no concern – but there is work to do.

"It just wasn't our day today. As we expected, the characteristics of this circuit didn't quite suit the AMR23, and we struggled for pace out there." Lance says that the high- and medium-speed corners of Silverstone Circuit didn't suit the AMR23 as well as they suited other teams.

"To come away from our home race at Silverstone with six points is a reasonable return from a weekend where we were lacking the pace to compete at the front. Fernando's race was pretty straightforward, and we optimised the timing of his switch to the Soft tyres under the Safety Car." Mike explains that six points is a decent haul given the AMR23 did not suit the circuit as well as our competitors' cars .

"We've been performing better than expected so far in 2023 and it’s a long season. Only two races ago we were fighting for the win and there will be more ups and downs during this season." Fernando says there are plenty more races ahead and plenty more points on the table. The competitive picture will change depending on the demands of each circuit.

"On a couple of occasions I was forced wide by Pierre [Gasly] and we made contact the second time; we’ll check this evening whether that caused any damage to the car." Lance reflects on a continued wheel-to-wheel tussle with Pierre Gasly at the end of the race that lasted a number of laps. Lance passed Pierre around the outside of Stowe on Lap 43 and, two laps later, the pair collided leading to a five-second penalty for Lance.

"Today was a case of damage limitation and Fernando had to defend hard in the closing stages to secure seventh place. Lance raced hard today. He was pushing hard to get into the top 10 in the final stages, but the contact with Pierre [Gasly] ultimately dropped him down the final order." Fighting hard. Mike highlights the determined drives of both Fernando and Lance in an effort to try to secure a solid haul of points for the team on home soil.

"It was great to be racing here at Silverstone and seeing the level of support there is for Aston Martin. Let's see if we can return to a better level of performance in Hungary." Fernando concludes by hailing the brilliant home support – with more than 400,000 fans in attendance – that we've enjoyed at Silverstone Circuit as he looks forward to the next round.

"It’s been a tough weekend but our focus now shifts to Hungary – a circuit that should suit our car – where we’ll be pushing hard for a better result." Lance says he'll do everything to bounce back with a strong result at the Hungaroring, which is a much lower-speed affair, particularly in Sector Two where a sequence of eight winding low- and medium-speed corners provide a real challenge for drivers.

"Today's result has consolidated our third place in the Championship and we increased our advantage over Ferrari. We will work hard as a team to return to a more competitive weekend in Budapest in a couple of weeks." Mike concludes by looking ahead to the challenge posed by the Hungaroring, where the tight and twisty circuit could suit our AMR23 better than Silverstone. We leave our home race sitting third in the Constructors' Standings.

Saturday

#14 Fernando Alonso | Free Practice & Qualifying

FP3

1:27.784

1:29.949

P15

1:28.368

1:27.659

#18 Lance Stroll | Free Practice & Qualifying

FP3

1:28.620

P13

1:29.448

P06

1:28.935

P12

"It's not the Qualifying we wanted in what was a challenging session in drying conditions. There is still a long race ahead of us tomorrow and our Sunday pace is normally a strong point of this car." P9 is not the result Fernando was seeking, but the race pace of the AMR23 is strong and more points could be on offer for the Spaniard tomorrow.

"I think more was possible in Qualifying today. The red flag forced us to run a third set of tyres in Q1, which meant we didn’t have a new set in Q2 and that put us on the back foot in comparison to others." Lance reflects on a red-flag hit opening session and how it compromised his afternoon.

"One of the most challenging Qualifying sessions of the year so far with a drying track, the constant threat of rain, and a red flag just before the end of Q1." Mike begins by summarising a tough day that saw rain give way to sunny conditions after a stop-start Q1.

"We still achieved another Q3 result, but we need to keep understanding our car at different circuits. The weather tomorrow may also be changeable, as it was today, so we need to remain focused and see what we can do in race conditions." Fernando adds that there is still work to do to analyse the behaviour and performance of the AMR23 as the season goes on – while adverse conditions could provide yet another opportunity on Sunday.

"It's a long race tomorrow and the AMR23 is feeling good, so I'll be doing my best to fight through the pack and put on a good show for the home fans." Lance starts tomorrow's race just outside the top 10, so there are points to be earned in front of our home fans.

"Overall we missed the absolute pace to be fighting for the top positions today so we need to review things, understand where we can find more performance, and take those learnings going forward. We will try to come back stronger tomorrow in front of the passionate British fans who will be out in force." Mike concludes by saying there's work to do to be able to eke out more pace from the AMR23. Tomorrow is another day, there are points on the table, and we have the support of our home fans driving us on.

Friday

#18 | Lance Stroll | Free Practice & Qualifying

FP1

1:29.471

FP2

1:28.866

#14 | Fernando Alonso | Free Practice & Qualifying

FP1

1:29.268

FP2

1:29.134

P10

"It’s been great to get out on track at Silverstone today; there’s no place quite like it." Drivers love turning laps at Silverstone Circuit and Lance is no exception. He also relished the passionate home support for the team on Friday.

"It's good to be back at Silverstone and racing just across the road from our AMR Technology Campus." Home advantage. Fernando points out that the team is at the heart of the action with our state-of-the-art home located a stone's throw away from the British Grand Prix venue.

"This circuit always provides a lot of adrenaline for us in Formula One cars. It was very windy today which made it quite tricky, but the car felt good. We tested a few things in both sessions and there is more for us to analyse tonight." Silverstone Circuit is a high-speed ride through 18 famous corners and Fernando says the wind made it tough to tackle on Friday – but there's plenty of data to work on overnight.

"We made a few set-up changes after FP1 and the AMR23 was feeling stronger for the second session. There are still a few bits to work through tonight, but the pace looked good so I'm feeling positive." Friday was a day of learning for the team, but Lance is pleased with the direction of the set-up of his AMR23.

"We'll see what tomorrow brings as it looks like the temperature will drop and there could be some rain in the area. We could be in for an interesting Qualifying!" Lance adds that the weather could be a factor come Qualifying, and that even if the track stays dry, conditions are likely to be different than those encountered on Friday.

"The weather looks like it could change tomorrow, so let’s see what conditions we are facing." Like Lance, Fernando has got an eye on the sky, as the weather could change the complexion of Qualifying on Saturday.

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