Aston Martin's calamities in Mexico cause Fernando Alonso's second consecutive retirement

With 24 laps remaining, when he was running second to last, only ahead of Guanyu Zhou, Aston Martin ordered Fernando Alonso's car to be withdrawn.. The second consecutive abandonment marked the culmination of the Asturian's disastrous career at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, where he could not even match the times of Lance Stroll, his garage partner.. Another dark chapter that should make the British team reflect, with the slowest cars on the track.

The fastest, for the sixteenth time in this World Championship, was driven by Max Verstappen, never bothered by Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, his companions on the podium.. With 51 victories, Mad Max has just equaled Alain Prost's record and is only two behind Sebastian Vettel. If there is any objection to his Sunday, blame Hamilton, who snatched the fastest lap bonus with treachery and almost nighttime.. Carlos Sainz, fourth, did not find the best sensations with the SF-23 either.

Not even at the start, when Ferrari suffered one of the most distinctive factors of this track, where the slipstreams act in a very powerful way.. Therefore, we had to observe with some skepticism the Scuderia's double on the front row and look back, where the Red Bulls plus the unpredictable Daniel Ricciardo would appear.. For once, the Australian maintained his composure against Verstappen, his ancestral enemy, so the usual three-way duel had Sergio Pérez as the exclusive protagonist..

Ferrari, waiting

Spurred on by thousands of throats, stung with pride after his fateful World Cup, the Mexican placed himself alongside the Ferraris before the first corner and paid for his excess of optimism before Leclerc's left front wheel.. Checo's premature goodbye contrasted with the good fortune of the Monegasque, who neither suffered structural damage nor was punished by the stewards despite having the front wing almost trailing..

Not even the loss of the lead before the first crossing of the finish line made him completely discouraged against Verstappen. For his part, Sainz held his own against Hamilton, waiting for Ferrari to decide on the first tire change.. If it was any indication, Lando Norris was already marching at the pace of the head with the hard tires.. Although he was out of position, in search of an improbable comeback, the McLaren's data was used almost immediately by Red Bull..

On lap 19, the Austrian team took the initiative to ride that white Pirelli compound. Five laps later, Mercedes followed the plan with Hamilton and just one later, McLaren with Oscar Piastri. With eight seconds of deficit, Sainz clearly lost the private duel against Leclerc. And after finally passing through the pits for his only stop, he rejoined six seconds behind Hamilton. Or put another way, the decision to keep him on a 48ºC asphalt for so long made him give up seven seconds to the seven-time champion.

Slower than Stroll

In any case, Ferrari's strategic hesitations seemed like child's play compared to Aston Martin's ordeal.. For the second consecutive race, Lance Stroll's car had to be intervened at the last minute, forced to start from the pit-lane. And the changes improved the Canadian's performance, faster than Alonso, which is already news for the Silverstone team..

The Asturian, initially sentenced to a frustrating Sunday, had to face several episodes of absolute blushing. How to be overtaken by Logan Sargeant's Williams, the worst driver on the grid, or how to give way to Stroll. “Maybe he has a chance. More than me,” the Asturian commented on the radio, already riding a second slower per lap than his teammate.. When they gave him the choice of his career plan, he was even more specific.. “I would say C, although in reality it doesn't matter to me”. He himself had asked his team if they had found damage to his car after the start.. “Negative, Fernando. We looked thoroughly and everything was fine,” they responded by radio.

Just at the halfway mark, an ugly accident by Kevin Magnussen at the entrance to the straight triggered a red flag and more than 20 minutes of stoppage.. An excuse, like any other, to think that a start from a standstill, with hard tires, would give some spice to a race without history. There was no such thing, of course, despite Hamilton tackling Leclerc's second place.. “With these tires it will take us a long time,” warned the British. However, the podium positions had already been defined. Not even the spectacular touch between Piastri and the combative Yuki Tsunoda added anything relevant.

Nor should Stroll's farewell be considered anomalous, after a collision with Valtteri Bottas under the Foro Sol, with 14 laps left until the checkered flag.. While Mike Krack, Aston Martin's main team, grimaced on the green wall and Ricciardo stalked George Russell in the fight for sixth place, the Mexican fans cheered Norris, who was able to complete a magnificent comeback from seventeenth to fifth position. When the chords of the trumpets and guitarrones in honor of Verstappen died out, Aston Martin confirmed that Alonso's withdrawal was due to the damage caused by the pieces that his car had stepped on.. And that Stroll had suffered a puncture in his right rear wheel. Too many calamities for another unfortunate weekend.