Fernando Alonso has admitted he is surprised to be leading the Formula One World Championship after two races.
Ferrari driver admits that he didn't expect to head drivers' standings
Fernando Alonso has admitted he is surprised to be leading the Formula One World Championship after two races.
The double World Champion, who joined Ferrari ahead of the new season, hit the ground running with victory at the opening grand prix in Bahrain before finishing fourth in Australia last weekend.
As a result, Alonso leads the drivers' championship, four points ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa, with Melbourne winner Jenson Button and his McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton respectively six and 14 points adrift.
Ahead of this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix, Alonso admitted: "It's been an incredible start to the season.
"I definitely didn't think I'd be leading the championship after two races. This situation is way more than I had expected."
Easy to drive
Alonso said he has the all-round performance of Ferrari's new car to thank for his strong start.
"The F10 has proven to be very good, even on a semi-street circuit like Albert Park. It's an easy car to drive," he said.
"It is reasonably easy to find a good set-up for any type of track. On top of that, it is very consistent, in that its handling doesn't change much between qualifying and the race.
"That should be a very important factor over the course of the year as there is a world of difference between trying to do a quick time with a minimum fuel load on Saturday afternoon and starting the race with a full tank on Sunday.
"Add in the factor that the car is not too hard on its tyres and that completes the package.
"I'm not too sure exactly where we are compared to the others, but one thing is for sure, we've definitely got off on the right foot."
Getting the job done
The situation at the top of the table could have been different had Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel, who led both the opening races, not suffered reliability problems.
Alonso stressed the need for Ferrari to perform throughout the weekend, adding: "There's no time to relax.
"But our target is simple: to carry on doing what we have done in the first two races. It won't be easy, but we must trust in our ability to get the job done."
