Fernando Alonso has shrugged off the “very, very small” problem which was responsible for his spin into the gravel early on the opening day of testing on Monday.
A wheelnut failure caused the right-rear wheel to fall off rounding the final corner on his sixth lap of the morning, costing McLaren almost all the track time when conditions were at their best in Barcelona.
Given the weight of expectation on the British team to perform this season, and being the highest profile on-track incident on Day 1 of Formula 1’s new season, the Spaniard was unsurprised by the amount of attention he received.
“It was a good day for you guys,” he told journalists later. “A car in the gravel makes a big thing, but there were six teams in the garage with the door closed, with the car in pieces – but there is no picture of that.
“This (the wheelnut failure) is a very, very small problem, but very graphic and very obvious.”
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The problematic morning at McLaren was only more ironic given the strong start by former engine supplier Honda, who managed 93 laps with new team Toro Rosso, 44 more than the Woking-based team.
Nevertheless, Alonso’s initial feeling was one of content.
“We didn’t plan to run in the morning much, we were on a different programme,” he explained. “We had a normal day in the afternoon, I’m the one who did the most laps in the afternoon. Others had a bit too many issues but [for us] it’s a very good start.
“The car felt very good here, good potential, also I think the performance side it is very early to say but everything seems to be in line with our expectations,” the double world champion added.
“I think everything is quite optimistic.”
