Two-time F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso decided to retire at the end of the 2018 season. From 2015 to 2018, the Spaniard decided to leave F1 after four frustrating seasons at McLaren. Since he could barely achieve any more success in F1, he decided to leave and try his hand at other forms of motorsport. So he decided to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Indianapolis 500 and the Dakar Rally. After two seasons away from F1, Alonso has decided to return with Alpine in 2021.
Why did Fernando Alonso return to F1?
The impact of the pandemic on other racing series was one of the main reasons why Alonso decided to return to F1 in 2021. As a result, Spaniards believe that most other racing series under the pandemic have been hit hard, especially for sponsors. Meanwhile, F1 remains healthy, according to Alonso.
Another reason Alonso's desire to return is to embrace his personal challenges. "I've always relied on my own challenges, not what I thought at that point in my career. ”
When did Fernando Alonso start playing in F1?
Alonso started go-karting at a very young age and had already won a race at the age of seven. He went on to compete in karting for several years before competing at the 1999 European Open hosted by Nissan. A year later, he raced for the 2000 Formula International 3000 season. After finishing fourth in the series, Alonso switched to F1 in 2001.
He made his debut with Minadi. Despite finishing 23rd in the 2001 championship, the Spaniard received an invitation from Renault to be a test driver for the 2002 season, and he seized the opportunity with both hands.
After a year as a reserve driver, Alonso secured a race spot with the same team. The Spaniard had a good season in 2003 and 2004 before winning the title in both 2005 and 2006. Unfortunately for him, however, he never won the championship again.
What other teams has Fernando Alonso raced for?
Alonso moved to McLaren in 2007. After finishing third that year, he returned to Renault for a few seasons before moving to Ferrari in 2010. Alonso had his biggest success at Ferrari. He won 11 races for the Italian team and finished runner-up three times.
As Alonso had never won a title at Ferrari, he decided to return to McLaren in 2015. However, he didn't realize at the time that his second job in Woking would be a disaster. Alonso failed to finish on the podium at McLaren in his second season, with his best finish in the championship being tenth.
He opted out of the sport at the end of 2018 before returning with Alpine in 2021. Alonso spent two seasons with the French team and managed to finish on a podium. However, after slamming Alpine for his lack of professionalism, Alonso decided to join Aston Martin in 2023.
It was at Silverstone that he seemed to find himself. Alonso managed to finish eight podiums with Aston Martin and finished fourth last year with 206 points. The Spaniard is now hoping to break that record in 2024.
Will Fernando Alonso win three tournaments?
Alonso is one of the few drivers who has proven his versatility in all forms of motorsport. Not only did the Spaniard win two F1 World Championships, but he also won the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Thanks to his wins at the Monaco Grand Prix and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, he is close to a triple crown. The Triple Crown is an unofficial achievement in motorsport, with drivers winning F1 races in Monaco, Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500. Alonso has tried to win the Indianapolis 500 on the last two occasions.
However, in both cases, he failed to win. In 2017, he finished 29th at the McLaren-Honda-Andretti team. Meanwhile, in 2020, he finished 31st with Arrow McLaren SP. With Alonso having failed in both attempts to win the match, he has revealed that he may give up on his dream of winning the treble.
If I do it again, it will be for the dream of a triple crown or an effort to achieve victory. It's not like you're in that kind of competition just for fun. But I don't know if I'm going to do it yet. If I don't do it anymore, it's not because someone says I can't win. You know, if I don't do it anymore, it's because I don't have the motivation to do it anymore. ”