Fernando Alonso has predicted that former team mate Lewis Hamilton will win a race for Mercedes in 2013.
The Spaniard was speaking at Ferrari's Wrooom press conference and also covered a number of other topics, including who he thought was the fastest driver on the grid.
He said "I am sure he will be able to win. Mercedes already won last year with Nico (Rosberg) and Lewis has been winning races with all cars.
“Even in 2009 with a car that was two seconds off the pace, they ended the year winning. Lewis will be able to win with Mercedes as well.”
Many expect Hamilton to have a tough time at Mercedes, but Alonso feels that the Brit will find success in his debut year with the Brackley squad.
Fernando also spoke about his closest rivals, who he thought were the fastest racers on the 2013 grid. He had only one answer, Hamilton.
“Who is [the] strongest driver? My answer is Hamilton, It was true last year, it was true this year.
“The strongest driver? It is a personal opinion, not political, not to make people think something. Who is the strongest opponent, the strongest driver on grid? Who is the one you have to keep an eye on? It is Hamilton – and it will still be Hamilton next year.”
He failed to mention newly crowned triple world champion Sebastian Vettel. When quizzed on this he said “I am not saying he is not the strongest driver.
“In 2011, there was a fantastic performance from him. It is true the car was much in front of everybody, they [Red Bull] were first and second consistently, and when the car is good you tend to relax in some races.
“But I remember difficult races in 2011 with wet/dry conditions, and he did not do any single mistake. So for sure in these three years there were moments when he was better than anybody else and he deserved these three championships.”
Rumours continue to simmer about a possible move from Red Bull to Ferrari for Vettel. Alonso said he would not mind having him as a team mate, hushing talk that he has influence over who is his team mate and that he prefers a clear number 1 and 2 driver combination.
“I would enjoy as I am enjoying with Felipe,” Alonso said. “I enjoy with all the team-mates I had.
“I had a fantastic time with all if them, good fights and constantly learning, because every driver does different philosophies and you improve yourself as well.
“If a new driver comes in it will be fantastic battle, fantastic for the team and good performance. If Felipe keeps racing it will also be very good and we keep helping Ferrari which is the main goal.”
The Spaniard was speaking at Ferrari's Wrooom press conference and also covered a number of other topics, including who he thought was the fastest driver on the grid.
He said "I am sure he will be able to win. Mercedes already won last year with Nico (Rosberg) and Lewis has been winning races with all cars.
“Even in 2009 with a car that was two seconds off the pace, they ended the year winning. Lewis will be able to win with Mercedes as well.”
Many expect Hamilton to have a tough time at Mercedes, but Alonso feels that the Brit will find success in his debut year with the Brackley squad.
Fernando also spoke about his closest rivals, who he thought were the fastest racers on the 2013 grid. He had only one answer, Hamilton.
“Who is [the] strongest driver? My answer is Hamilton, It was true last year, it was true this year.
“The strongest driver? It is a personal opinion, not political, not to make people think something. Who is the strongest opponent, the strongest driver on grid? Who is the one you have to keep an eye on? It is Hamilton – and it will still be Hamilton next year.”
He failed to mention newly crowned triple world champion Sebastian Vettel. When quizzed on this he said “I am not saying he is not the strongest driver.
“In 2011, there was a fantastic performance from him. It is true the car was much in front of everybody, they [Red Bull] were first and second consistently, and when the car is good you tend to relax in some races.
“But I remember difficult races in 2011 with wet/dry conditions, and he did not do any single mistake. So for sure in these three years there were moments when he was better than anybody else and he deserved these three championships.”
Rumours continue to simmer about a possible move from Red Bull to Ferrari for Vettel. Alonso said he would not mind having him as a team mate, hushing talk that he has influence over who is his team mate and that he prefers a clear number 1 and 2 driver combination.
“I would enjoy as I am enjoying with Felipe,” Alonso said. “I enjoy with all the team-mates I had.
“I had a fantastic time with all if them, good fights and constantly learning, because every driver does different philosophies and you improve yourself as well.
“If a new driver comes in it will be fantastic battle, fantastic for the team and good performance. If Felipe keeps racing it will also be very good and we keep helping Ferrari which is the main goal.”
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