2023-10-11 14:03:34
During a particularly physically demanding Qatar Grand Prix for all Formula 1 drivers, Fernando Alonso saw his race further complicated by a burning sensation in the cockpit.
“The tub is on fire, man.”launched the Iberian on the radio. “Can we do something at the pit stop? Throw some water on me, do something!” Aston Martin could do little to relieve his pilot.
“I think Lance [Stroll] and I had some difficulty with the temperature of the tub on the right side”detailed Alonso after the race. “I got burned in the first 15 laps, so I even asked on the radio if they could throw water or something on me during the pit stop, which apparently isn’t allowed . In short, it was relatively extreme. We’ve had problems before, but today it was extreme.”
With the torrid heat, these conditions reminded Alonso of the tests carried out with Toyota for the 2020 Dakar. “I did a test here in August before the Dakar and it was similar to today”he recalled. “Qatar is always relatively extreme at this time of year.”
Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
The problem of intense heat in the seat seems in any case to be recurring at Aston Martin, but to have taken on a remarkable scale in the Losail furnace. Indeed, when asked if this problem had ever arisen, team principal Mike Krack replied: “Yes, that’s true. He’s reported it a few times already. We were working on it. And it’s not that we didn’t do anything. We also encountered this problem in Singapore, where we found that things were much better. But there were new extreme conditions, so I think we are not far from putting on the air conditioning if it continues like this!”
But why does this tub heat up so much? “There are hydraulic lines, there are electronic control units around. They all heat up, and we try to insulate the tub from them”explains Krack. “But it’s not desirable to have an active cooling system, because it’s just weight.”
Alonso nevertheless managed to score the points for sixth place, which however proved insufficient to counter the fantastic comeback of McLaren. The Woking structure has registered 47 units in Losail, coming back 11 lengths from her competitor.
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