Fernando Alonso says he does not expect Ferrari to be able to challenge for wins when racing resumes in Turkey in three weeks, but is hoping to get closer to Red Bull and McLaren.
Ferrari has been off the pace since the start of the season, with a best-placed finish of fourth at the Australian Grand Prix. Having had encouraging performances during winter testing, it's been a disappointing first three races, leaving Alonso already 42 points behind Sebastian Vettel in the title race. Having been outpaced again in China, Alonso says he doesn't expect a quick fix, but is looking for progress.
"Realistically, I do not expect to see a Ferrari capable of beating Red Bull or McLaren in Turkey," Alonso told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "But at least we need to bring them closer."
Despite McLaren's Lewis Hamilton winning the race in Shanghai to halt Vettel's run of victories, Alonso said he still felt Red Bull were the team to beat, and that he was looking forward to a break before attempting to close the gap in Turkey.
"Red Bull are still ahead," he told AS. "Our car was the same, aerodynamically and mechanically, as it was in Malaysia. Mercedes and McLaren had improvements so maybe that's why they were better. We need to get to the bottom of our situation, to the core of the problem, and improve from there.
For Turkey there will be some improvements, but the other teams are not going on holiday so you can't think the rankings will change too much. Personally, I'm going to take a break, as we've been a month away from home. I will get on my bike and clear my mind."
Alonso was the subject of an odd situation in China when his rear wing opened outside of the designated DRS zone. Following Michael Schumacher, Alonso's wing activated between turns 14 and 16, despite the zone being marked out as a section of the straight before turn 14. The reason was an error that caused the system to offset by 450 metres, costing Alonso time. He will not be punished, but the FIA are looking in to the cause of the incident.
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