The Aston Martin Aramaco Cognizant Formula One Team made a fast start to the 2023 Formula One season on the opening day of track activity ahead of Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix at the Sakhir International Circuit.

Two-time champion Fernando Alonso who joined the team over the winter from Alpine was second in the opening session while he was fastest in FP2 with a time of 01:30.907s.

Speaking following the action the Spaniard said:

It felt good to drive the car today and it is nice to see both cars high up on the timing sheets especially after only three days of Testing. The team is working together well, and we are still learning a lot about the new car. I think it will not be clear who is on top until after this weekend and probably into the first couple of races at different tracks. For now, we are just concentrating on ourselves and trying to find the right balance with the car. There are a few things we need to evaluate overnight and we will prepare as best we can for the first qualifying session of the season tomorrow. We have our feet on the ground, and we are realistic with our expectations heading into tomorrow.”

Lance Stroll who missed pre-season testing due to injuries he suffered in a training cycling action had a great day as he ended both sessions in sixth place.

Speaking after setting a time of 01:30.450 in second practice the Canadian said:

“It was so great to be back in the car today and get my first proper laps of 2023 in. It has only been 13 days since my accident and at that point I was not sure I would be back in an F1 car so soon, so be here with the team is amazing. We lost a little bit of time in FP1 with an ignition issue, but once that was fixed we ran well and collected some important data to work through tonight. It is clear that the team have made some really good progress over the winter break; the car was feeling great to drive and I am excited to get back behind the wheel tomorrow.

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