Fernando Alonso responded to Lewis Hamilton’s comment that the Red Bull RB19 was “the fastest car I’ve ever seen”, pointing to Mercedes’ early dominance in 2014-2015, saying he had a “poor memory”. ‘ he quipped. During the weekend of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Hamilton commented on how Red Bull’s Max Verstappen overtook him early during the race.
“Even when we were fast, it wasn’t this fast. It’s the fastest car I’ve seen, even compared to other cars,” said Lewis Hamilton. Speaking to Fernando Alonso in an exclusive interview with L’Équipe, he suggested Hamilton recalled his comments at Mercedes at the start of the turbo-hybrid era. “I totally disagree,” Alonso said of Hamilton’s comments. “Last week I finished 20 seconds behind Czech (Perez) and Max (Verstappen). Hamilton and (Nico) Rosberg were one minute ahead in 2014 and 2015. He has a poor memory. Years. I guess he took it!” Alonso added that he now believes Hamilton is being exposed by the flaws in Mercedes’ underperforming W14. “In a normal car you can see that he has weaknesses,” added Alonso. “Before, he would drive alone or sometimes with teammates. I just gave it a -0, which shows how important the car is.”