If you think Fernando Alonso is clinging on to grand prix racing in the increasingly forlorn hope of adding to his two world titles… you’d be wrong. Speaking exclusively to GP Racing, some of his closest associates explain what keeps this phenomenal competitor coming back for more – and why he’s just as quick as ever
WORDS OLEG KARPOV PICTURES FERNANDO ALONSO/INSTAGRAM AND ASTON MARTIN
HE COMPETES. IT’S WHAT HE DOES.
And at 42 years of age Fernando Alonso shows no signs of slowing down – or of forsaking his abiding passion.
“He loves it more than others.” Pedro de la Rosa – podium finisher with McLaren, Bahrain lap record holder, Aston Martin ambassador and Alonso’s compatriot and friend – doesn’t have to think too hard when GP Racing asks him what keeps Fernando in Formula 1, and why he’s still ferociously quick.
“The thing is, if I knew exactly why he’s so good, I’d be in that car,” Pedro laughs, nodding towards the Aston Martin garage. “But I don’t think there’s any other reason he’s still here. He has a very strong love for motor racing. And I don’t mean Formula 1. I mean any kind of racing.
“He calls me in December 2021 and says, ‘Why don’t we go to Dubai and do the 24-hour kart race?’ When he called me for the first time, I said: ‘Man, aren’t you tired? You just had a whole year of F1, and now you want to race go-karts?’ And he said, ‘Well, racing doesn’t make me tired.’
“So, we go there and he ends up being the fastest of our team, by far. He ends up doing the maximum number of stints allowed, which is about eight hours in total, and the rest of us do the minimum we can. He also acts like a team manager. He’s deciding the strategy. He brings his laptop, he’s in charge of the run plan. And it’s fantastic to see, because you realise the level of detail he goes into – in every type of racing – and how much he enjoys it and how much fun he has.
“And that’s the main reason he’s still at his peak, it’s because he hasn’t backed off. He’s training as hard as when he was 20, if not harder. And that translates into this level of performance. Obviously, it’s not enough, other drivers could do the same. But then you add a level of natural talent hardly equalled by anyone, and you get Fernando.”
NATURAL BORN WINNER
There’s a clear trend running through the list o
