Fernando Alonso’s key advisor says the Aston Martin team is "going backwards".
The two-time champion is having a dire weekend at Imola, including a big practice crash and then a technical problem in Q1 that leaves him on the very last row on the grid.
"When I went for my last attempt, the team called me and told me to stop because they saw something, which I still don’t what it is," Alonso told DAZN after qualifying. "They insisted on boxing."
The 42-year-old, who recently signed on for 2025 and 2026, says his weekend is now basically over.
"This is the second most difficult circuit for overtaking after Monaco," said Alonso. "Even Singapore is less difficult.
"That’s why I don’t expect anything except finishing the race, going home and thinking about Monaco."
Flavio Briatore, who remains a long-time key advisor to Alonso, is making a visit to Imola this weekend. He spoke to DAZN outside the Aston Martin garage, where the team was at the time still rebuilding Alonso’s crashed car.
"I see Fernando looking good - the car not so much," the former Renault boss said.
"It seems that the machine is not working well here," Briatore added. "Instead of moving forward it seems like they are going backwards.
"From what I’ve seen so far, it seems that they have taken a step back. Many (car) improvements, yes, but sometimes it is better to have less improvements overall but more that work well."