After suffering with early electrical problems in the Italian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso says that the McLaren F1 Team must work on their reliability in order to compete with the midfield.
Alonso is yet to score points in the effective second-half of the 2018 championship, also involved in the first lap, first corner crash at last month’s Belgian Grand Prix. It means that for the first time in the season, the Spaniard does not stand in the top ten of the Drivers’ Championship.
McLaren have struggled with chassis performance in 2018, marking a troublesome start to their customer partnership with Renault Sport, ultimately seeing Alonso grow further disillusioned with Formula 1 and look for pastures new for 2019.
Despite this, the 36-year-old acknowledged that there was an upturn in pace at the Italian race before his enforced early exit. Alonso believes that Singapore can be a welcome venue for McLaren, suggesting that points may be on the cards due to the Marina Bay Street Circuit being kinder to the MCL33.
However, he noted that the team must work on their reliability issues in order to live up to their potential.
“We had some difficult races in Belgium and Italy,” said Alonso.
“We were hoping to come away with points instead of two DNFs, but on the positive side we managed to find some pace on Sunday in Monza.
“The important thing for us to focus on is reliability, especially since Marina Bay should be better for us and our package, so we need to maximise our performance. Points are still definitely the target.”
As they work to finish in the top five of the Constructors’ Championship for the first time since 2014, Alonso maintains that McLaren must continue their development of the current car in order to keep up with the most competitive midfield that Formula 1 has seen in its modern history.
“The field is becoming very competitive as we progress through the season,” he added. “So we know we need to work hard to maintain the pace of development compared to our competitors.
“I’m looking forward to racing under the lights in Singapore and it’s always a fantastic weekend of racing for the fans.”
Alonso boasts two wins at the Singapore Grand Prix in his career, one of three drivers to win the event multiple times, taking the inaugural 2008 race in controversial circumstances and following that with a more conventional win on his first visit with Scuderia Ferrari in 2010.
