Fernando Alonso predicts a 'very stressful' race

Saturday, Fernando Alonso has just ended a series of four qualifications during which he lost to Felipe Massa, his exhilarated teammate at Ferrari. Third behind the pole sitter Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) and Kimi Räikkönen (Lotus), the Spaniard is counting on the pace in the F138 Grand Prix to do just as well on Sunday. “Our race pace is normally better (than the one in qualifying, Editor’s note) and I see no reason why it should be any different here so I expect a good position during the race, to fight for a podium and hopefully a victory?, explains the double world champion.

If it was Lewis Hamilton on his Silver Arrow who showed the most verve this Saturday, notably signing the fastest lap of the weekend, Fernando Alonso seems more concerned about Kimi Räikkönen and his Lotus E21 . “With Kimi we have a strong opponent because normally the Lotus is one of the best cars to take care of its tires and we know that this is going to be a key element”, details the Asturian. “Stopping first will be advantageous in terms of pace, but a disadvantage in terms of traffic because it will mean starting again among cars shod with Medium tires and in the middle of a longer stint. We will have to be flexible and intelligent”. It will be an exciting race for the spectators, concludes the Scuderia Spaniard, but “very stressful for us”.