Alonso raced with broken bones during 2022 F1 season
Fernando Alonso has revealed he raced with broken bones in his hand during 2022, ahead of his Aston Martin Formula 1 team-mate Lance Stroll returning from injury this weekend.
The injury was sustained when the Spaniard crashed into the wall during Q3 in Australia last year. Alonso suffered a hydraulics failure aboard his Alpine to end a lap headlined by the fastest second sector of any driver.
While the two-time F1 champion did not miss a race, he did continue to sport bandages on his wrist through to the Monaco Grand Prix four rounds later.
Speaking ahead of the 2023 season opener in Bahrain, the 41-year-old explained that he had still suffered with the effects of breaking bones in his hands until August.
Asked by Autosport to relay his experience, Alonso said: “In my case, I broke a few bones in both hands last year.
“So, until August, I was not fully recovered. I had some pain, but we love driving!”
This comes ahead of Stroll making an unexpected return this weekend, after the Aston Martin driver was involved in a pre-season cycling incident in Spain while building his fitness.
Although the team reported only “minor injuries”, Aston keeping coy on the finer details led to paddock speculation that Stroll had broken wrists and required lasting specialist treatment.
However, on the Thursday ahead of the Sakhir race, the team announced the Canadian’s swift return following a procedure.
This means Aston reserve driver and FIA F2 champion Felipe Drugovich - who stood in for Stroll during last week's test and was on standby - will not make his F1 race debut this weekend.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
In deference to Stroll’s speedy comeback, Alonso praised his new stablemate’s desire to win.
Alonso, who reckoned his and Stroll’s injuries were “very different things”, added: “I don’t know exactly what Lance has. It’s a private thing… he will check on the car, obviously.
“It’s already very good news that he’s here and he will try. That shows his desire to win and his motivation to win with this team.
"This is even fighting for whatever position we can this weekend. He’s here ready to try. That’s a very good sign.”
Although team boss Mike Krack admitted during pre-season testing in Bahrain last week that Stroll had yet to experience the AMR23 in the Silverstone simulator, Alonso revealed Stroll has since undertaken sessions after keeping in communication with the team throughout.
“We’ve been in contact from day one,” said Alonso.
“So, Lance was updated on everything during the test. We spoke with him during lunch and also in the evening sessions.
“He was at the simulator the last few days as well giving us feedback, so we were on the same page basically on real time.”
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