Fernando Alonso says he is keeping a close eye on the situation at Red Bull to see if tensions between drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez reach boiling point. Red Bull's RB19 has proved the class of the field so far in 2023, winning all three races and appearing to have a performance advantage over every other car. Alonso's Aston Martin squad have made a big step forward since 2022, with the Spaniard scoring three consecutive third-place finishes, and the team lying second in the Constructors' Championship. However, the Spaniard says his chances of winning his first Grand Prix since Spain 2013 largely depend on misfortune befalling Red Bull. "Hopefully a win will arrive, the 33rd that has been talked about so much. But we have to be realistic," Alonso told DAZN . "We know that the Red Bulls are too far ahead now. But hey, anything can happen. "A reliability problem, a touch between them. We know there has been a lot of talk about them having a hot environment, so we will pay attention."
Tensions in the Red Bull camp?
Verstappen and Perez were not in close attendance during the Australian Grand Prix, after Perez started from the pit lane following a spin in Qualifying. But after the preceding Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Perez, who won from pole position after Verstappen had suffered problems in Qualifying, expressed surprise that the Dutchman had taken the bonus point for fastest lap, despite being told not to push. And at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix, Verstappen defied team orders to let Perez past, with rumours suggesting that the Dutchman's unhappiness stemmed from an incident at that year's Monaco Grand Prix when Perez crashed during Qualifying, thus preventing Verstappen and other drivers from improving their times. Alonso himself is no stranger to a frosty intra-team environment, having had a famously tempestuous relationship with then-rookie teammate Lewis Hamilton at McLaren in 2007. Relations between the two title rivals deteriorated to the point that the Spaniard walked away from the team at the end of the year, just 12 months into a three-year deal, with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen adding insult to injury by snatching the World Championship title from the warring pair at the season's final round in Brazil.
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