13 Jan 2012

Alonso says Ferrari has freshened ideas

11:57 am on 13 January 2012

Former Formula One motor racing champion Fernando Alonso has credited former McLaren man Pat Fry with bringing fresh ideas to Ferrari.

Fry was promoted to technical director at Ferrari in May last year after moving from rivals McLaren, where he had worked with Alonso in 2007, in July 2010.

Ferrari won just one race last year, with Alonso in Britain, but hope to do much better this season after a technical overhaul that continued mid week with the arrival of former Bridgestone tyre development chief Hirohide Hamashima.

Alonso says Fry has brought new ideas and a different approach to the one that Ferrari traditionally adopted towards its work.

He says last year we began to see improvements in all areas compared to the past, but then we stepped up a gear again in the second half of the 2011 season, with a more efficient way of working.