Fernando Alonso focused on a 'tight battle until the end' for P2 in the constructors championship

Fernando Alonso believes that the battle for second place in the constructors championship could go down to the wire. Speaking at the Thursday driver’s press conference ahead of the 2023 Hungarian GP, the Spanish driver reckoned that Aston Martin's rivals are leveling up their development game.

Asked by Sportskeeda if the British team could grab P2 in the championship, Fernando Alonso said:

“It’s going to be a tight battle until the end. So yeah, let's see what is the final position. We also forget that behind us there are some strong competitors and very fast teams and drivers."

He added:

"Ferrari and McLaren now, so we’re still P3 in the championship and we aim to finish P2 but with the feet in the ground, and knowing that it’s going to be a tight battle until the end."

Aston Martin are currently 22 points behind second-placed Mercedes in the standings. Given the British team’s drop in performance in Austria and Silverstone, the Spaniard is worried about rivals like Ferrari and McLaren surging up the grid.

Meanwhile, with six podium finishes in 10 races, Fernando Alonso is only 19 points behind second-placed Sergio Perez in the drivers standings. He is also closely trailed by former teammate and rival Lewis Hamilton, who is 16 points behind in fourth place.

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Fernando Alonso is confident about the Hungaroring circuit

Having claimed the first victory of his career at the Hungarian GP in 2003, Fernando Alonso is confident about returning to the circuit with a competitive car.

He believes the layout and characteristics of the Hungaroring circuit are better suited for the AMR23 compared to those in Austria and Silverstone, where he finished fifth and seventh respectively.

But with competitors also improving their cars, the two-time world champion is skeptical about where Aston Martin stand in the pecking order.

Asked why he was confident about returning to the Hungaroring circuit, Fernando Alonso replied:

“I think because the layout of the track and the characteristics are a little bit more similar to the circuits that we did perform well at so far this year, and I think high-speed corners, long straights are not maybe the strength of our package. And I think Austria and Silverstone were a clear example of those."

He added:

"So yeah, hopefully here, we can come back to a stronger performance, even though our main competitors, they improved their packages, and they will be very strong as well here. So it's going to be difficult, but hopefully good fun."

While Aston Martin have not introduced any major upgrades for their car, they have brought in a new engine cover with a pointy fin.