Formula One news

Alonso blames team for hold-up

Fernando Alonso said his team was responsible for the hold-up in his second pit stop which resulted in him holding up Lewis Hamilton, preventing the British driver from completing another flying lap, and allowing Alonso to take pole position.

"The team was holding me back in the pit stops and we tried to have a bit of space on the track, especially to the Ferrari ahead of us," Alonso said calmly after qualifying.

In Alonso's first tyre change in final qualifying there was also a hold up when a tyre blanket got caught in the suspension.

"In the first stop the tyre blanked was a problem getting caught inside the wheel and car," he explained. "But the mechanics pushed very hard to get it off and it was fine."

"We've been very competitive all weekend from the first session to qualifying and the last couple of Grand Prix we didn't have the opportunity to beat the Ferraris in normal conditions, so here we have the chance if we have a good race, the performance is there," Alonso added.

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