Alfa Romeo just missed out on points at the Turkish Grand Prix. Where Antonio Giovinazzi finished on the eleventh place, Kimi Räikkönen couldn't get any further than a twelfth position. Chief engineer Xevi Pujolar was disappointed afterwards.
At the end of the race, the racing team tried to increase the pressure on number ten Esteban Ocon by instructing Giovinazzi to leave his teammate in front. Räikkönen had a new set of intermediates and therefore had a good chance of scoring a point. The Italian refused to do so, which caused some dissatisfaction at Alfa Romeo.
"We asked to change positions, but at that moment Antonio also started to increase the pace and he decided himself that he wanted to stay at the front," Pujolar describes the situation to Motorsport-total.com. "In that situation, in those few laps, maybe we could have been faster as a team."
Battle in Manufacturers' Championship
The disappointing performance leaves Alfa Romeo in ninth place in the Constructors' Championship. The Italians have scored seven points so far, while Williams have 16 points more. "It was certainly not ideal for the team. I didn't really understand why we couldn't swap at that moment," Pujolar said.