Alfa Romeo marks a good result in Lusail with Zhou Guanyu and Valterri Bottas in the point zone. The Italo-Swiss team challenges Williams now.
Alfa Romeo had one of its best results at the Qatar Grand Prix, with Zhou and Bottas in the points for the first time this season. The team was looking for this Grand Prix since the weekend in Japan and the hard work paid off.
Zhou Guanyu, who recently renewed his contract with Alfa Romeo, had an awesome race. He qualified 19th on Friday, his lap ruined by Logan Sargeant. The move was unnecessary for the Chinese driver, but he still focused on the rest of the weekend. On Sunday, however, he finished in the point zone and saw the checkered flag in p9. Later on, the Alfa Romeo driver said that, although the beginning of this race week was tricky for him, the result was incredible. Zhou described it as “something quite special”.
From Last to P9! 😁
Double points finish today for the team, amazing job from everyone in @alfaromeostake & @ValtteriBottas for this great come back! 👏🏼#QatarGP #TeamZHOU pic.twitter.com/fxTLrvNjp2
— 周冠宇 | Zhou Guanyu 🇨🇳 (@ZhouGuanyu24) October 8, 2023
The Chinese capitalized the penalty for track limits of his direct rivals Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll and Pierre Gasly. Also, the team had a good strategy, managed the pit stops of both drivers alright and optimized the new beam wing.
Valterri Bottas had a better start of the week, qualifying in p9 on Friday. He admitted to being happy to be in Q3 once again and to fight for points. The driver gained one position during the race, crossing the finish line in p8 right before his teammate.
Alfa Romeo showed to have a good race pace, with the cars being quick enough even on hard tyres and the drivers being really careful about track limits. The pit stops were well managed, with a solid and clear strategy from the team during the mandatory three stints.
Putting on a show from the back of the grid to finish in the points, there was no backing down from @ZhouGuanyu24. 👊
Read more. ⬇️ | #QatarGP
— Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake (@alfaromeostake) October 9, 2023
Fighting for the 7th place and challenging Williams
With the points collected during the Grand Prix in Qatar, Alfa Romeo has 16 points now. The Italo-Swiss team is 8th in the Constructor Championship, with 4 points more than Haas.
TEAM STANDINGS (with five rounds to go)
McLaren now trail Aston Martin by just 11 points 👀#F1 #QatarGP pic.twitter.com/EM1WnSyn8D
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 9, 2023
The challenge now is to get ahead of Williams, 7th in the Championship with 23 points. Alessandro Alunni Bravi, the Team Principal, is hopeful for his team to conquer the place in the standings. After the race, he said:
“ We have the people, the drivers and the commitment to do so”
–Alessandro Alunni Bravi
The Alfa Romeo’s TP admitted that it will not be easy, but they will keep working in the Factory for new upgrades and to maximize this package. The aim is to keep going in this direction and give their rivals, mainly Williams, a challenge.
