Fernando Alonso "up to speed" after completing "boring" Alpine jobs

Alonso waiting at the pit wall — Photo: © LAT Images

Alpine

Alonso "up to speed" after completing "boring" Alpine jobs

Alonso makes his return to F1 after a two-year absence

Ewan Gale

Thursday 18 March 2021 13:00

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Alpine racing director Davide Brivio believes Fernando Alonso is now "up to speed" ahead of his first race since returning to Formula 1 after completing a list of "boring jobs".

Alonso, who returns to F1 this season after a two-year absence, enjoyed a productive three days of pre-season testing recently by completing 206 laps of the Bahrain International Circuit - the fifth-most of any other driver.

Despite being involved in a road traffic incident just weeks before the test in addition to his lay-off from the sport, Brivio believes the two-time champion is fully prepared for his return.

“Regarding Fernando, I saw him up to speed," said Brivio.

"He had to do some boring jobs, trying different set-ups, settings and we didn’t really look for the peak performance but it was more about getting back in a car, trying the different options, different settings we have sometimes in order to be prepared for the race.

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“We are in the same situation as everybody else. We tested like everybody else and I think they can be up to speed from the first race and ready to fight at the level of the others – in terms of their preparation.

“Then, of course, it is our responsibility to give them a good package and let’s see."

With Esteban Ocon adding 190 laps of his own to Alonso's tally, Alpine amassed critical mileage in an attempt to understand the effects of the current aerodynamic regulations following the changes made over the winter.

With the traditional doubts over true pace and performance looming over each team's testing programmes, Brivio has remained cautious as to his expectations for the season opener.

"Over the three days, it was really difficult to understand the level of the others, where we are," he added.

"We have to see the race weekend, probably the first few races, but I feel we will be ready for the race.

“What Esteban and Fernando have to be able to do is to use the full potential of the car and then it will be our job to see where we are and try to give them a better package from time to time.”