F1 news: Fernando Alonso makes confident Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel claim
FERNANDO ALONSO has claimed it is a matter of when, not if, he will be challenging the likes of Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton for a spot on the F1 podium.
Hamilton beats Alonso in his 'rookie year' of Formula 1
Two-time world champion Alonso shocked many with a fifth-placed finish in the season-opening Grand Prix in Australia last month.
McLaren were making lots of noise during pre-season that they could finally be on course to challenge their rivals for honours this year.
But there were worrying reliability signs in testing heading into Melbourne, suggesting all was not right with the car.
Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne didn’t make the final qualifying session, starting the race 11th and 12th respectively, but both managed to finish in the top 10 with the former ending up ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and little over 20 seconds from a podium spot.
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McLaren will now be hoping to build on a promising start to the season when they take to the track in Bahrain this weekend.
And Alonso, 36, is confident he will be able to finish in the top three in the near future.
“We were two places from that podium already in Australia,” Alonso said.
“They were very close, the last ten laps, Ricciardo and Kimi fighting together so anything can happen in a race.
“I won two races in 2008 with that ING Renault.
“I was on the podium in 2009 with the introduction of KERS and that car that we were, I think, ninth in the World Championship or something like that, and I was on the podium so anything can happen in F1.
“If you are close to that position, sooner or later that opportunity will come and we will be there to take it. I think it’s very possible this year.”
