Antonio Giovinazzi has dreams of a podium with Alfa Romeo but admits a “tricky” 2021 might be more likely.
The Swiss team slumped to eighth in the Constructors’ standings for the second straight season last year, although did finish on top in their private fight with Williams and Haas at the back of the grid.
But due to restrictions introduced after Covid-19, car development has been much narrower than normal during the off-season, and Giovinazzi accepts making significant progress will be tough.
“The winter went quickly, and I am really looking forward to the new season,” he said at the launch of the new C41 car on Monday.
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“This will be my third season with the team, and, of course, we know it may once again be a tricky one, but I am confident the hard work we all did during the winter in the factory will pay off.
“The target is still the same: scoring a lot of points together. My dream would be to score a podium with this team, that would be at the top of our list.
“But first we need to see where we are in terms of performance and speed. I am confident that we can do very well this year.
“On my side, I have trained very hard and I am just looking forward to being in the car for the first test and then finally for the first race.”
Previously, Giovinazzi’s best finish was fifth at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix, and after the crazy races seen last year, nothing can be ruled out.
Alfa though could see a possible advantage in being one of only three teams to have the same driver line-up for this season, particularly given the lack of testing.
“We’ll only have three days for two drivers this year, that means just a day and a half for each of us,” he noted.
“That won’t be easy but fortunately, because of the regulations and our team’s stability, we are in a good situation.
“The car will be quite similar to last year, so we can focus immediately on trying to do as many laps and collect as much data as we can and be ready in top shape for the first race.”