Italian Grand Prix winner Fernando Alonso has warned his Ferrari team they will need to find true consistency for the title run-in if they want this season to end in glory.
The 29-year-old Spaniard said his hopes of a third drivers’ title would depend on how Ferrari handle the closing five races.
“I think this result gives you some extra confidence and good motivation for the whole team,” he said after claiming a home victory for Ferrari on his maiden run at Monza.
“So, we’ll keep working hard and try not to give up — one race or a bad race can change the points a lot in the championship.
“For me, for us, this was a good weekend. Spa was a bad weekend — and now we need to find consistency in the last five races.
“That will be the key — this result is good motivation for all of us, but in the remaining five races it is really the important races and the good points.
“So we need to enjoy tonight [Sunday], enjoy these next two days and we’ll be in Maranello on Monday and Tuesday to say thanks for the whole team — and championship-wise there is time to think later on.”
In winning, Alonso delivered his team president Luca di Montezemolo’s call to turn pole position into a decisive triumph.
Fans’ prayers
The Spaniard answered the fans’ prayers with Ferrari’s first Formula One win at their home circuit since Michael Schumacher’s victory in 2006, despite being overtaken at the start by McLaren’s world champion, Jenson Button.
It was the double world champion’s third win of the season and 24th of his career, equalling the tally of the late, great Argentine Juan Manuel Fangio.
His Ferrari teammate, Felipe Massa, was also delighted to finish third.
Said Massa: “It was a good result at the end, but for sure at the start I had a chance to pass maybe Fernando who was struggling on the second corner with Jenson
“And it was the right decision on the pit stops. It was a good race and the performance of the car was good — and the people celebrating on the track were amazing at the end.”
Button, who led for more than half the race with Alonso a constant threat, finished runner-up in a race that was decided by the timing and speed of the pit stops, with the Briton first to make a move.
With Button’s teammate, Lewis Hamilton, banging wheels with Massa and retiring on the first lap, Red Bull’s Mark Webber surged five points clear of the unhappy Briton in the drivers’ championship, despite finishing only sixth.
The top five are now separated by just 24 points, less than the 25 available for a victory, with everything to play for and five races remaining.
Australian Webber has 187, Hamilton 182, Alonso 166, Button 165 and Red Bull’s young German, Sebastian Vettel, 163. — AFP, Reuters