Alonso sees possible a strong result at Spain!

By role
May 4 2004

Fernando Alonso is looking forward to his home Grand Prix. The Circuit of catalunya expects more than 110.000 people on the stands this weekend and the Spaniard knows many will be cheering for him. This will therefore bring added pressure for a driver that is used to fight with it.

Alonso, as all drivers, has tested quite a lot at Barcelona and knows the track quite well. However, he is fully aware that you only race there once per year and that this is the time to show his best:

"We test at Barcelona all the time, but you only get to race there once a year. To see the grandstands full of 100,000 people and know that 95% of them are supporting Renault is a unique sight, and something it’s hard to forget. It is a special feeling to be at my home race, in front of my people, and I am looking forward to that. The circuit will not be new for any of the drivers, but there is always something different about actually racing at Barcelona." He says.

Pressure could affect a driver but Alonso is sure that he expects to extract motivation and not pressure from the fans:

"For me, the attention adds motivation not pressure. Obviously, I need to make sure it doesn’t disrupt my preparations, but the attention from the fans is definitely a big boost for me. When I am driving, it gives me something extra: somehow, you concentrate more, you focus more. I remember from last year on the last lap, how everybody was stood in the stands cheering – they are fantastic supporters in Barcelona, and the crowd definitely gives me a boost." He adds.

The R24 seems suit for such a track and Renault expects to do well at Spain. Alonso is also aware that the driver can make some difference on the car as also despite all drivers knowing the track quite well:

"It is much harder than at other circuits, definitely, but it comes from the car and also yourself as a driver. You can make up time under braking, and there are four fast corners where a bit more commitment, a bit more speed, can gain some time, particularly in the last two. But it is only small things, fractions of a second, and to create an advantage over your rivals, you must get every single lap right. It is very important to be as consistent as possible." He mentions.

Alonso does not want to put the expectations very high and then fail to see them materialize so therefore he is being cautious this time when talking about where he thinks he can finish:

"We don’t know – I don’t want to create expectations and then fail to deliver on our promises. We need to be careful talking about performance because, in their own way, each one of the first races has been a surprise for us, and we have had different levels of competitiveness at each track. We will be doing our maximum, both me and the team, and we think a strong result may be possible. But let’s wait and see." Says Alonso.