Fernando Alonso has warned that this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix sprint format "will not be ideal" for Aston Martin due to the event's condensed schedule.
In Montreal last time out, Aston rolled out an updated AMR23 that featured a revised sidepod and floor package. The changes helped Alonso secure his sixth podium of the season, the Spaniard clocking in second on race day behind the ever-dominant Red Bull of Max Verstappen.
However, Aston's crews are still seeking to fully understand their car's new package, and F1's sprint format timetable will inevitably leave the Silverstone-based outfit with less track time to optimize its contender.
A single practice session on Friday will be followed in the afternoon by the qualifying session that will determine Sunday's race while Saturday will be entirely devoted to the Sprint event, with qualifying in the morning and the 3.-minute race in the afternoon.
"I think the sprint weekend will not be ideal for us," Alonso feared. "We still [need] more time maybe of free practice with our new upgraded car. We still need to understand and optimise the package a little bit.
"In Austria, obviously with the sprint, we will have only FP1 to do that."
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However, the Spaniard reckoned that the Red Bull Ring's fast and sweeping layout will cater to the qualities of Aston's car while he also singled out Ferrari as a potential beneficiary of the circuit's characteristics.
"The circuit will be good and maybe better for the package as well… so maybe Austria we have a little bit more pace," added Alonso.
"Maybe good for Ferrari, historically here as well with a long straight and short corners, so maybe in Austria we have a little bit more pace."
Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack believes his outfit will need to wait a few races before it can properly assess its car's latest changes.
"I said in Barcelona that we should always wait a couple of races to identify really where you are," he said, quoted by Motorsport.com.
"The mix between updates and the track characteristics makes it really difficult to get a clear picture. So, the safest thing to say at this point is Red Bull is in front...
"Anything else, I think it's probably also the shape of the day, how you are that day or how the circuit is suiting your car, or which tyres you're having on."
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