Fernando Alonso left Suzuka empty handed after a frustrating Japanese Grand Prix, that saw him on the verge of securing tenth position all the way to the final lap but was unable to make the move on the Williams of Felipe Massa, who had a lot more straight line speed from his Mercedes power unit.
It was a race that never truly came together for the Spaniard. His grid penalties left him at the back of the grid and despite climbing through the field remorselessly, it wasn't easy to overtake, and he narrowly failed to make it into the top 10, despite the fierce chasedown of Felipe Massa in the final laps.
โWe started 20th and we finished 11th, with a good recovery, with only one pit-stop, and starting on a used set of tyres. That was a pretty huge effort from everyone on the team. After the penalty on Friday night, due to the engine change, I think we deserved that one point โ we fought hard for it,โ he said.
โIt was an unlucky situation with Felipe towards the end of the race. He was struggling a lot with his tyres when the Virtual Safety Car came out. That meant he could breathe a little bit during those laps. Then, in the last two laps, the leaders of the race caught up with us, and Felipe again missed out on an attack, and ultimately took the point for 10th place.โ
โWe'll try again in Austin. Hopefully with no penalties. And from our usual grid position. And with some better luckโฆโ
