ASTON MARTIN LOOKING LIKE "AWESOME MARTIN" AFTER A GREAT START

Martin team might consider calling itself "Awesome Martin" after a stunning start to the season at Bahrain Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso showed his talent is not fading at the advanced age of 41,...

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With re-branding commonplace in Formula One, this Aston Martin team might consider calling itself “Awesome Martin” after a stunning start to the season at Bahrain Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso showed his talent is not fading at the advanced age of 41, finishing third to give the Spanish driver a 99th career podium in his team debut. Although Alonso impressed in pre-season testing, when his teammate Lance Stroll was recovering from injury, Alonso still felt he was dreaming after only his second podium since 2014.

“I had the same feeling from testing — it’s too good to be true. You’re always expecting that you will (take) a step back and you will get back to reality. But it seems real," the two-time F1 champion enthused. “I really enjoyed the race and, even after the checkered flag, I felt like I could have driven for another hour.” It seems Red Bull's may be already too far ahead to catch, with a dominant Max Verstappen leading a 1-2 under floodlights in Bahrain. But could Aston Martin jump past Mercedes and Ferrari to become the main challenger? Another strong performance in Saudi Arabia on March 19 will increase the hype, although Alonso is measured in his optimism.