Alonso expects 'up and down' battle in Mercedes, Ferrari fight

Fernando Alonso expects it will be "up and down" in the battle for second in the Constructors' Championship until the end of the season.

Aston Martin is currently in a close battle between Ferrari and Mercedes, with the Silver Arrows currently 45 points ahead of Ferrari and 56 ahead of Aston Martin behind runaway leaders Red Bull.

The goal for the team is to reclaim second in the last eight races, as it looks to capitalise on its early season form which yielded six podiums in 12 races.

Alonso expects it will be tough when asked by media including RacingNews365 about the prospect of finishing as runners-up: "It's going to be long until Abu Dhabi, I think there's going to be ups and downs for everybody," Alonso said.

"We saw during the season, some moments and some races it seems that we were the second fastest. Some of the races we feel that we are the fifth or the sixth fastest. This is difficult to guess, but you know we are competing.

"Obviously we are in a position that is a privilege to have, fighting with top teams and we're still enjoying every moment in every weekend.

"I think we have to go race-by-race and be very open about our chances. If we can score many points, we will fight for second."

Alonso: We need to build momentum

The team's form has fluctuated since they introduced updates in Canada, but Performance Director Tom McCullough has previously said he has no concerns over their development direction.

"In Monza we were not competitive, that's for sure. We hope to be in a bit better shape here [Singapore], but I think it's very tight," said Alonso.

"At some of the street circuits we had a feeling, like at Monaco, that we were okay. [But] in Baku, we were not okay.

"I think we have to wait and see and build momentum from FP1."