Fernando Alonso prematurely ended a disappointing United States Grand Prix in Formula 1. After recovering from a start from the pit lane to try to get involved in the fight for points, he was forced to retire with extensive damage to his Aston Martin.
Quoted by the newspaper AS, team boss Mike Krack revealed the extent of the damage: ‘The track is extreme, truly tough, tougher than Qatar’s. There is a part of Fernando’s underfloor that broke, half a meter wide that disappeared during the race. We see it from the outside, we reinforce everything when we come here, every deflector that can be reinforced. The drivers know it best’.
According to the engineer, the current cars and the track itself combine to cause this type of damage: ‘It’s a combination of this type of circuit and this generation of cars. It’s a very tough track’.