The roller coaster (in this case, Portuguese) of the Portimao circuit does not suit the Alpine from Fernando Alonso Y Esteban Ocon, and both have stayed away from the positions of the upper-middle zone of the grid at the start of the weekend of Portuguese GP.
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Especially worrying is the case of Spanish, who is still outmatched by his partner. In a somewhat hesitant first free practice session, Alonso finished 14th, which is by no means a good result and whose reading is much worse when compared to French: has been 10th. Ocon’s best time was half a second faster than Alonso’s best.
On a track almost unknown to the Spaniard, many pilots spent the session trying to understand it in a few very complex conditions. The asphalt was remarkably cold, the tires did not reach optimum temperature at any time and there were even moments during the session when the hard ones (theoretically slower) were more competitive.
Practice pitstop to end the session. Both cars return having completed their programs.
P10 // Esteban 1: 20.800
P14 // Fernando 1: 21.303 #PortugueseGP pic.twitter.com/YVv4Q7sY49– Alpine F1 Team (@ AlpineF1Team) April 30, 2021
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The difference of half a second seems excessive, given the equality that reigns in the upper zone. This was clear from the result of the first five: between Valtteri Bottas (1st) and Lewis hamilton (5th) there were barely 3 tenths. Between Mercedes’s men they both got Red bull (Max verstappen 2nd, only 25 thousandths, and Sergio perez 3rd) and a Ferrari (Charles Leclerc). Carlos Sainz he finished the first round 9th, although in his attempt to make a good lap he went off the track and missed his options.