Fernando Alonso says this year's Australian Grand Prix will be even faster than last year's, as he seeks to make it three podium finishes in as many races in 2023. Last year's race was the first at Albert Park since 2019 after a Covid-enforced hiatus, with track changes seeing the removal of the chicane at Turns 9 and 10, creating a flat-out run from Turn 6 through to Turns 11 and 12. 2022 also saw the widening of Turns 1, 3, 6 and 13, along with the entire track being resurfaced for the first time since it was first laid in 1995. There are no new physical changes to the Albert Park track this year, but a key difference is the addition of a fourth DRS zone between Turns 6 and 11. This was set to be introduced for last year's race, but after being used during Friday practice, safety concerns saw it removed for the rest of the weekend.
Alonso feeling good after back-to-back podiums
"Australia is always a fun race to go to and I am curious to see how the track differs to previous years," said Alonso. "It is going to be even faster than last year and hopefully we will see more overtaking. "But, as ever, Qualifying will likely be pivotal at Albert Park, so we need to make sure we have a strong Saturday to put us in the best possible position to score as many points as possible." "We head to Australia feeling good having scored back-to-back podiums and we hope to build on these results this weekend. The car has performed quite well on two different circuits so far. "However, our feet remain on the ground and we are realistic that in order to keep scoring strong results we need to deliver in all areas of the team."
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