Frédéric Vasseur was delighted to see his Alfa Romeo Racing team finish the Austrian Grand Prix with both cars inside the top ten, the first time in 2019 this happened, with Kimi Räikkönen and Antonio Giovinazzi finishing ninth and tenth respectively.
Räikkönen ran as high as fourth in the early laps at the Red Bull Ring but fell behind a number of faster runners to end the day in ninth, while Giovinazzi finished on the Finnish drivers’ tail to secure his maiden Formula 1 point in tenth.
Vasseur, the Team Principal of the Hinwil-based team, was pleased Alfa Romeo were able to fight towards the front of the midfield once more, and he praised both drivers for running intelligent races to bring home three points.
He also admitted that with a few more laps, both drivers could have attacked and potentially gained one more position as they closed down McLaren F1 Team driver Carlos Sainz Jr., who was struggling in those closing laps with a broken front wing, but ultimately ninth and tenth was the best they could achieve.
“I am very pleased with the work we did today,” said Vasseur. “We put two cars in the points for the first time this season and we showed again we can compete towards the front of the midfield.
“Both Kimi and Antonio raced intelligently, knowing when to attack and when to look after their tyres, and to have both scoring is a reward for the whole team. We could have perhaps scored a few more points in the end, when we were catching Sainz with both cars, but in the end we can be satisfied of what we got.”
Vasseur admits the recent upturn in form needs to continue into the forthcoming races, which begin next time out at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix.
“We have been showing improvement in the last few races, so we will aim to build on that and continue our good run of points,” said Vasseur.
