Fernando Alonso shows true colours with assessment of Hamilton and Verstappen

F1 preview: A lap of the Austrian Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso has revealed he loves battling with F1’s biggest stars as he shows off his champion mindset. The Spaniard praised Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen’s skills behind the wheel as he stressed how much he enjoyed respectful battles.

Alonso once again mixed it with the leaders in Canada while Mercedes were also closer to Red Bull. Although the 41-year-old couldn’t keep up with Verstappen’s Red Bull, he did enjoy a close battle with Hamilton on Sunday.

Alonso eventually edged out the Mercedes star to pick up his sixth podium finish of the season. After the race, Alonso said: “I really enjoy these battles and these podiums.

“There is a lot of respect, a lot of talent when you fight against Max and Lewis, you know that you cannot make a mistake because they will take advantage of that, and they will not make a mistake. So, if you want to beat them, you need to be tenth-after-tenth, fastest to close that gap. It’s not anything that will benefit.

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“It’s a very intense battle, very fair, very respectful, even in the overtaking possibility that we had on the DRS when I passed Lewis, you know that you can trust what he’s doing – he will defend hard but within the limits. I guess [it’s the] same at the start, when you start in the first two rows with these guys, you know that there’s a sense of awareness and respect that it’s not sometimes in other parts.”

It’s been a breakthrough year for Aston Martin with the squad turning around their form from midfield runners to frontrunners. Alonso has finished inside the top three at every race this season except for Spain and Azerbaijan.

However, Alonso has made it clear the team is targeting victories before the end of the season despite Red Bull’s dominance in 2023.

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Hamilton was also delighted with a podium despite being unable to hunt down Alonso. Like his former team-mate, Hamilton was also thrilled to share the podium with two iconic drivers.

He explained: “It is quite an honour to be up there with two world champions. I was really excited to be third, and just trying to be in that mix.”

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