Fernando Alonso celebrated a vital British Grand Prix victory on a day that brought milestones for both Ferrari and their star driver.
Spaniard moves fifth on all-time win list
Fernando Alonso celebrated a vital British Grand Prix victory on a day that brought milestones for both Ferrari and their star driver.
The Spanish double world champion scored both his and the Scuderia's first win of the season - one that also confirmed their resurgence after a poor start to 2011.
Sunday's win was also Alonso's 27th in F1 - taking him joint fifth in the list of all-time winners, level with Sir Jackie Stewart.
Furthermore, it came on the 60th anniversary of Ferrari's first in the sport, achieved by Jose Froilan Gonzalez in the 1951 British Grand Prix which was also held at Silverstone.
Alonso had earlier delighted the crowd by taking to the track for two demonstration laps in the Ferrari 375 that Gonzalez had triumphed in.
Sixty years on, Alonso then delivered win number 216 for the Prancing Horse - one that came in the nick of time if they are to stand any chance of overhauling Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull.
Privilege
"It is a very special win," said Alonso. "I think Silverstone is a special event for every driver competing in Formula One.
"Today I had the privilege to drive Jose Froilan Gonzalez's car. It was the first Ferrari win in Formula One and this year it is 60 years ago that one Ferrari car won the first grand prix in Formula One.
"Today we won on the same circuit with the same passion, with the same group of people, working for this fantastic team.
"It obviously means a lot for all the guys, the people working for Ferrari who are the sons or daughters of the guys that were here 60 years ago.
"They are working in the factory, with the same mentality, with the same passion for racing that is in Ferrari's DNA."
Ferrari suffered a woeful start to the current campaign by their standards, with neither Alonso nor team-mate Felipe Massa able to secure a podium finish at the opening three races.
They have since fought back, though, with Alonso finishing second in Monaco and Valencia before finally mounting the top step at Silverstone.
"In spite of a difficult start to the year, [we] never give up," he added.
"We keep showing the Ferrari brand and the Italian flag on the rear wing everywhere we go, very proudly.
"The team has been improving a lot. It seems in the last three or four races every new part on the car is working fine, so they are steps forward for us and very good news, not just for this year but also for next year's development.
"Both Felipe and me feel much happier with the car."
Aggressive
Even so, it initially seemed a case of business as usual as Vettel and Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber pulled clear of Alonso in wet conditions during the early laps.
He then fell to fourth behind McLaren's Lewis Hamilton when conditions allowed a switch to dry tyres but the Ferrari soon came into its own.
Alonso was back ahead of Hamilton by lap 24 and then set about reeling in the Red Bulls.
After deposing Webber, Alonso took the lead on lap 28 when Vettel suffered a delayed pit stop and pulled away to win by 16.5 seconds.
The win moves Alonso up to third in the drivers' championship, 92 points behind Vettel, and he concedes more of the same is required.
"Every race we try to [treat] like a final," he added.
"Our championship hopes are very difficult because Sebastian keeps finishing all the races first and second, so the only thing we can do is try to win every race we go to and be very aggressive.
"Every race, every start, every strategy will be at the maximum."
