Fernando Alonso issues renewed title challenge
2005-06 Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso of Ferrari has sharpened the edge of the 2010 season with his challenge to the McLaren and Red Bull title contenders. The 29-year-old, who has taken sweeping
victories at the last two Grands Prix, claimed that the real battle has finally begun, and that he is more than prepared for the challenge.
“Right now, at this point of the championship, I'm at a peak – 100% motivated, focused etc.,” claimed Alonso. “A championship that is nine months long rarely happens in other sports. We are in a sport
where you cannot be completely fit, focused and motivated 100% at every race, every month. You are up and down. Sometimes in past championships in September, I was getting tired, what with all these long flights, getting very stressed.”
Yet for the Spaniard, who has scored a hefty 93 points in the last five races, the 2010 season has left him calm and collected. “This year it is different,” he reflected. “It feels like the championship
is starting now, so I feel very happy we will be going to Japan next race.”
And the tifosi’s new poster boy is justified in approaching the Suzuka track with greater confidence, having stunned critics and fans alike with his dramatic comeback. The driver was thought to be but
a passing hope for the F1 title, shadowed by the talents of Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull and Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button of McLaren. But after taking victory in Germany, Italy, and Singapore – tracks which were thought to favour the Red
Bulls and McLarens – Alonso has soared to second place in the driver’s standings with 191 points, a mere 11 points behind Webber.
Yet Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali has never failed to see the potential in his star driver, and backs him up to guide the helm of Ferrari to another season’s climax, as long as Alonso can maintain
his nerves.
“As we all know the car is crucial with regard to reliability and performance,” said Domenicali. “But we also know that when things are so close, and there are certain moments that are the main moments
of either qualifying or the race, the difference is really in the head. It is because you have to be there in the right moment without risking too much, because if you do then you may suffer problems. It’s an area where the fight will be very intense, but
I don’t want to say it’s the only area because if you don’t have a good car, forget it.”
And according to Domenicali, Alonso has the mental composition to equal the capacity of the car, as well as the support of team-mate Felipe Massa and the rest of the crew. “For sure, Fernando is strong
in the head, and I really hope he will be the strongest in front of the others,” he explained. “I know his characteristics, but it’s also about team work. We need to work with the guys at the track and at home because if you don't work perfectly as a team
then it will be difficult to win. But one of Fernando’s main characteristics is that he is very cool, very calm, and that’s what we need from him. That is an important point of his leadership that is very strong in the team.”
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