Fernando Alonso admits he wasn't happy about the early criticism laid upon him in the first part of the season, but the F1 returnee ultimately considered the negative comments as "a blessing".
In Bahrain, Alonso returned to the F1 grid with Alpine after a two-year hiatus from Grand Prix racing during which he added another win at Le Mans, returned to the Indy 500 and tackled the Dakar rally raid.
But life in motorsport's fastest lane came calling once again for the two-time world champion who accepted to return to the fray with midfield squad Alpine, banking on the French outfit's prospects beyond 2021.
However, doubts emerged over Alonso's ability to work his magic after the opening races of 2021 in which he was comprehensively outpaced by his Alpine teammate Esteban Ocon.
©Alpine
"I knew it was a process of adaptation," said the Spaniard in an interview with SoyMotor.com.
"I thought it would have been faster, because Formula 1 was a natural thing for me compared to the WEC, the Dakar Rally or Indianapolis [500], and I thought I would be at 100% quickly.
"Take Monaco as an example: I was hoping it would be a good circuit for me, but I missed out on Q1. This was disappointing for me."
Early on, Alonso urged patience, insisting his performance would improve at the start of the summer upon F1's return to more traditional tracks.
In hindsight, it took more time than expected for the 32-time Grand Prix to really get up to speed. Alonso explained why the delay was beneficial, or a "blessing" as he called it.
"I knew it was a matter of time," added Alonso. "The criticism and the comments that were made… It’s not that I liked them, but they were a blessing.
"They were a blessing because I knew that it was only a matter of time before people started to appreciate if I finished a race in 10th place.
"Had I always been in front of Ocon, had I always been in the points, they [the critics] would have said what they’ve said throughout my career, which is that my team mate was not at the same level and that the car had more potential, but that I was missing out.
"Then, if suddenly they think I am done, anything I accomplish is appreciated much more.
"Some races were not great, like France for example, where I finished ninth. It was a good race, but nothing special.
"But it was considered to be a super performance because I was starting to do good races again. It was a good thing."
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