F1 News: Team boss reveals how difficult ‘dynamic’ between team-mates is managed

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F1 boss reveals how difficult ‘dynamic’ between team-mates is managed

Team-mate relations are one of the most important things to get right as an F1 boss

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Monday 15 January 2024 15:57

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack has revealed how he deals with a 'difficult' Fernando Alonso while trying to maintain good relations between the Spaniard and Lance Stroll.

Alonso has been known to have a fiery relationship with his team-mates, with Lewis Hamilton, Felipe Massa and Esteban Ocon all feeling the wrath of the two-time world champion over the years.

Now 42 years old, Alonso is still performing at the highest level in Formula 1 and even described his 2023 season as his 'best ever', after claiming eight podiums with his new Aston Martin team.

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While he finished up fourth in the drivers' championship, his Canadian team-mate Stroll could only manage 10th, 132 points behind Alonso.

Fernando Alonso is a two-time world champion

Fernando Alonso had a complicated relationship with Esteban Ocon at previous team Alpine

Alonso and Stroll getting on well

Krack has now revealed how he manages to keep the pair sweet, and how each of them brings essential skills that he hopes will help the team to challenge the likes of McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari in 2024.

“We have a particular situation, obviously, because one of the drivers is the son of the owner and the other is an experienced mature driver," he told Motorsport.com.

"So, you need to think: what are the dynamics and how are they going to be evolving?

“When Fernando joined us, many people were warning us he can be difficult, so we tried to prepare ourselves.

"We had to think, what is our approach – and this was not only me, it was the sporting director, and performance director – and how are we going to manage the media?

Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso enjoy a good relationship at Aston Martin

“But we needed to be aware that both Fernando and Lance had known each other forever – already from the Ferrari times. So when it started, we took the approach that we have to be open, honest and transparent with both at all times.

“We managed, with the contribution from both drivers and from everybody around, to keep an open, honest, transparent relationship – and this made it really easy," he continued.

“But I have to say, Lance and Fernando, the way they work with each other, the way they treat each other, does not need any intervention from our side, because they are just very mature. They put the team in the centre, and it is the same for us. For us, the team is everything.

“They know that we have nine hot competitors out there, and we don't gain anything by fighting each other. That's really very helpful. So credit to both of them for the way they handled it.”

Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Mercedes McLaren Aston Martin Fernando Alonso