De Vries knows getting points will be tough: ''We have to be honest''

17 March 2023 at 06:41

Last update 17 March 2023 at 08:30

GPblog.com

Nyck de Vries isn't worrying yet after AlphaTauri's poor result in Bahrain. The Dutchman believes that how competitive the AT04 is can vary from track to track, although he knows that scoring points will be very difficult.

AlphaTauri proved to belong to the back of the grid at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Yuki Tsunoda and De Vries qualified in 14th and 19th places respectively. Tsunoda came even close to the points in the race in eleventh place, while De Vries was still far away from it at P14.

Points for De Vries

Ahead of the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix, however, De Vries is hopeful. ''Two weeks in Sakhir is far too little to properly assess the car's capabilities,'' the AlphaTauri driver said according to the NOS. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit should give more insight into performance and De Vries hopes to be more competitive.

Although the street circuit in Jeddah is a completely different track due to the new asphalt, high cornering speed, and low tyre wear, De Vries also knows that points will not be easy to come by. ''We have to be honest. In normal circumstances, there are always five teams ahead of us: Red Bull, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Mercedes, and Alpine. That already divides the points.''

Behind that group, De Vries points to Alfa Romeo as the frontrunner and it will be up to AlphaTauri to beat teams like Williams, Haas, and McLaren on the street circuit. Nyck himself wants to get the most out of his car and will then see what the result is. Above all, he will want to be closer to his teammate than was the case in Bahrain.