Alonso: “Happy to have scored these two points in the first race”

Sports writing, 20 Mar Spaniard Fernando Alonso (Alpine), who finished ninth this Sunday at the Bahrain Grand Prix, the first of the Formula One World Championship, said at the Sakhir circuit that he is “happy to have scored these two points in the first race of the year” “I am very happy to have scored two points in today's first race of the season,” declared the double Asturian Formula One world champion this Sunday in Bahrain, where he won three of his 32 Formula One victories, the 32 that Spain counts throughout its history in the premier category. “It was not easy with the high degradation of the tyres, which, in any case, we all expected before the race”, noted Alonso, 40, who after two out of it - in which he won (twice) the 24 Hours of Le Mans (France), the World Endurance (WEC) and the 24 Hours of Daytona (USA); and he made his debut at the Dakar Rally - he returned the last season to F1, to readjust to the category, also achieving, by finishing third in November the Qatar Grand Prix, his 98th podium in F1. “We had to defend a lot during the first half of the race and we had to push hard, so maybe that wasn't entirely ideal,” commented the Ovetense. “We need to keep learning about these new tires and it will probably be one of the most important issues during the season,” he warned. “In general, I think overtaking is easier now, because the tyres are all at different levels and it is easier to follow the cars in front. We will run again next weekend, in Saudi Arabia, where the challenges will undoubtedly be different this time,” said Alonso this Sunday in Bahrain. CHIEF arh/jl