Valtteri Bottas (FIN) Alfa Romeo F1 Team C43. 23.07.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 12, Hungarian Grand Prix, Budapest, Hungary, Race Day.
Alfa Romeo is targeting a lap time improvement between “two and three tenths” from the upgrades it will debut after the summer break, according to Team Representative Alessandro Alunni Brav.
The Hinwil-based side has slumped to ninth in the standings this term, only accruing nine points from the first 12 rounds of 2023.
It marks a remarkable downturn from this time last year when Alfa Romeo had thrived in the new regulation cycle to score 51 points en route to finishing sixth in the standings.
However, Alunni Bravi has underlined the two campaigns shouldn’t be compared, highlighting how Alfa Romeo’s regression actually began midway through last season.
“We cannot compare this season with last season,” he told Speedcafe. “Last season, we reached P6, which was the best result in a decade for our team.
“But we also did, in the second part of the season, a step back, and so we started from that point.
“And the fight is really, you know, the pack is really tight; Aston Martin did a big step, now Aston Martin is fighting for the top three positions in the Constructors Championship.
“We expect that the competition will be higher each season. In Formula 1, each year, we raise the bar in terms of technology, in terms of investment. This is a continuous battle.”
Zhou Guanyu (CHN) Alfa Romeo F1 Team with Alessandro Alunni Bravi (ITA) Alfa Romeo F1 Team Managing Director and Team Representative and Xevi Pujolar (ESP) Alfa Romeo F1 Team Head of Trackside Engineering on the grid. 30.07.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 13, Belgian Grand Prix, Spa Francorchamps, Belgium, Race Day.
The Italian marque is aiming to avoid the steep decline that witnessed it only add a pitiful four points to its tally through the remaining 13 rounds of last year.
Alunni Bravi insists that Alfa Romeo will continue to bring substantial upgrades to its C43 car – but he stresses that any new parts must provide sizeable gains.
“We have a plan already for the season,” the Italian, 48 elucidated.
“We expect the next big upgrade around Monza, and then of course another important upgrade around Suzuka. So we have our plan.
“What is important is that we have seen that we need the big upgrades; it’s not enough to have one-tenth.
“Of course, where you need to recover, you need to be able to produce upgrades that allow you to do a significant step.
“It’s not micro, little developments, it’s not marginal gains for us. For us, it’s a matter of each time we introduce an update, it must give us between two and three-tenths.
“This is a challenge because if it will be an easy task everybody will do it.”
Alfa Romeo’s current total of 11 points has the Sauber-ran entry lying only two points behind both Williams and Haas ahead of the season resuming with the Dutch Grand Prix this weekend.
However, the team, which is scheduled to transition into Audi in 2026, will need to end its barren run of not scoring a point in the past four rounds before the break – the worst run of any side.
Keyword: Alfa Romeo upgrades ‘must give between two and three-tenths’