Fernando Alonso has admitted that he has been impressed by his fellow Alpine driver Esteban Ocon. The Spaniard is known for outperforming the majority of his teammates, but the 2021 season has so far seen Ocon fare better than the two-times world champion. Despite this, Alonso is glad to have Ocon alongside him and feels that they are working well together. "Definitely I'm impressed and I'm happy to have Esteban alongside me," Alonso told RacingNews365.com and other select media. "He's very professional, he works very hard, not only here trackside but also in the simulator. "We shared a lot of stuff. While either of us is in the simulator, we try to be connected and work towards a better car. "I know that he puts a lot of dedication into the team. It's good for both drivers when you have a teammate who works very hard, so he's doing that." Alonso had a difficult weekend at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, having qualified down in 15th place before finishing the race in 10th. The veteran driver hopes to reverse his fortunes soon and get the better of Ocon. "At the same time you want to be as fast as your teammate or a little bit faster every time. This time [in Imola qualifying] it didn't work into that way, but I will try the next one." Whilst Alonso didn't have the results he might have hoped for at Imola, the Spaniard claimed that he had grown in confidence as regards getting used to the car. He knows that this will be an ongoing process though. "I will not be confident in Portimao," Alonso said of the upcoming Portuguese Grand Prix. "This is not a thing that goes from day to night and then you’re 100 percent, it will take time, but I’m here to work and get better and a race like today helps massively because you can feel the car in very difficult conditions and you can learn a lot more than just a normal race."
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