Alonso and Aston Martin Find Silver Linings in Sepang's Rainy Chaos

Fernando Alonso managed to steer Aston Martin into the points for the first time since August with a P8 finish at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. Starting from P12, Alonso had little faith in his chances of scoring points, predicting a struggle with straight-line speed early on and a lack of pace to recover lost ground.

Yet, the race in Sepang had other plans. The rain-soaked Sunday threw Alonso's initial assumptions out the window, ending with him in the points despite a less-than-optimal tyre choice at the start. Alonso humorously noted the irony of a grid reset after several drivers faltered on the formation lap, quipping, "I think I had 50% DNFs this year. They never stopped the race for us. Yeah, that was quite strange!"

The race began on a wet but drying track. Like several other teams, Aston Martin opted for slicks, specifically mediums, expecting the track to dry quickly. "The rain was very much appreciated in terms of opportunities for us," Alonso reflected. "We even started with slicks because we thought that the rain was not anymore there. It took quite long to restart the race, but I'm sure there is an explanation."

The slick tyre gamble quickly proved misguided, with most slick runners switching to intermediates. Alonso, however, stayed out, hoping for a timely Safety Car to neutralize the disadvantage and compress the field. His stubbornness paid off as he managed to pass his former McLaren teammate, Lewis Hamilton, during the slippery dance.

When the anticipated Safety Car did arrive, Alonso seized the moment, climbing up the order. He overtook Arvid Lindblad just before a late Virtual Safety Car that morphed into a full Safety Car period. With George Russell's retirement and Lando Norris' mishap, Alonso found himself in P8, holding position to the finish.

"I think it is the track," Alonso mused. "We've been more competitive this weekend in general, both cars in Q2, and today fighting in the midfield territory. So yeah, overall it was a better weekend. Let's see if we can keep up this pace, especially in Singapore, where we have some hopes next weekend."

Aston Martin's Chief Trackside Officer, Mike Krack, acknowledged the misstep with tyre strategy but remained cautious about the result. "I think we did some good decisions, but we did also some that were less good, and this we need to review clearly," he said. "We then bailed out [of the slicks] with Lance, with Fernando we continued. We were just in the debrief, and he said it didn't feel that bad until the intermediate runners came and just flew by."

Krack pointed out the team's fortune with the Safety Car, which allowed them to claw back into a "normal race" after a chaotic start. "I think we were fortunate with the Safety Car to close up again, and then it started more going into a normal race. I think it was quite intense, quite interesting. A lot happened."

Despite the positive finish, Krack urged caution. "Let's not forget, three weeks ago we were in Madrid, one week ago we were in Baku, and we were just nowhere," he reminded. "I think we need to keep our feet on the ground here, analyse really why we were more competitive here, and look ahead and see how we can benefit more from that."

As the team savors this rare bright spot in a challenging season, Krack underscored the importance of recognizing small victories. "For the team, it's great, because we have been really through tough times, and the few positive moments that you get you have to – I'm not saying celebrate like a World Championship party – but I think you need to take a breath and acknowledge when good results come your way, because we have not been fortunate enough to have many."