Although the championship is about to finish, there are positions in the standings where the last word has not yet been said. La Ferrari, already defeated by Red Bull and Max Verstappen which also awaits a I answer on the penalty for exceeding the Budget Cap in 2021, you have to watch your back from the Mercedes which aims to undermine the second place of the Maranello team. Even the fight for third place continues at full speed, thanks to the exchange of blows between Alpine and McLaren.
The French team was able to count on the support of both drivers and a car that very often had excellent top speed. Dealing only with reliability issues. Diametrically opposite speech for McLaren, more reliable but less powerful and in difficulty especially with Daniel Ricciardo, always behind his partner. In the last two GPs these two teams have repeatedly exchanged positions but there is a question that afflicts the top management. How will this fight continue?
Alpine ahead
Alpine has carried out a series of rather substantial updates over the course of the season. Some have worked, others haven't, but the results seen so far have highlighted a car capable of changing its shape according to the different types of circuit. There McLaren Basically it didn't have a very promising project, plus the difficult start at the beginning of the season it resulted in the team having to play defense rather than offense. For this last part of the season it will be necessary to focus on yourself says the team principal Andreas Seidl: “Now it's important to focus on ourselves, make sure we have flawless weekends and extract from every single session the maximum we currently have on our car. We have to recognize that Alpine has done a great job so far this season. It will be very difficult for us to stay in the fight until the last lap of the Abu Dhabi GP, but that's why we're here”.
A fight to the last point
It certainly wouldn't be as exciting as last year's between Hamilton and Verstappen, but McLaren will try to make this fight last as long as possible, counting on playing weapons it seems. In Alpine the main enemy is reliability which will probably force the team to mount fresher units by taking penalty, perhaps already in Austin. "Reliability will also play an important role in the last few races, but I still think our car is good. We have a good team, two strong riders and, if we can do our job well, I'm sure we can stay in the battle until the last lap of the season." Seidl concludes.
Source statements: Motorsport.com
