The Roar
The Roar

Advertisement

Should Fernando Alonso leave McLaren Honda, or quit Formula One altogether?

10th June, 2015
Advertisement
Is a Red Bull alliance with Honda on the cards? (AFP / Jorge Guerrero)
Expert
10th June, 2015
14
5559 Reads

There’s no doubting Fernando Alonso’s speed and tenacity as a grand prix driver. But when it comes to career choices, the Spanish star has seemingly squandered his potential with a number of ill-advised moves.

His recent decision to abandon Ferrari for McLaren and its new engine partner Honda in 2015 is the latest mistake, as Ferrari is now the only challenger to Mercedes-Benz and the Honda engine is slow and unreliable.

His last championship win, in 2006, seems an age ago…

Alonso vented his frustration during last weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. After being told on the team radio to conserve fuel, Alonso responded with, “I don’t want. I don’t want.”

He was already towards the back of the field and feeling the effects of a struggling engine that would later force him into a third consecutive retirement.

Alonso later added, “You are fighting and then you get to a group of cars where some people catch you and they are faster than you. You look like an amateur driver and that’s not good.”

It’s easy to understand Alonso’s frustration. On driving talent alone, he should be challenging Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel and co. for race wins. But Formula One doesn’t work like that. And since his championship double with Renault a decade ago, Alonso has jumped around from a controversial season with McLaren, to an unsuccessful return to Renault, to five seasons of frustration at Ferrari before the surprise return to McLaren.

Approaching his 34th birthday, Alonso knows time is running out for a third championship. McLaren Honda has a long way to go to produce a competitive and reliable package, given its slow start to 2015 and the restrictions of manufacturers.

Advertisement

With McLaren Honda likely to need a couple of more seasons yet to develop a winning engine, especially with the uncertainty over the future technical regulations of the sport from 2017, will Alonso still be around to reap the rewards?

So what should he do given the ticking time clock of his career? Alonso has been one of the most vocal critics of Formula One’s current state of play, where tyre, fuel and energy conservation are more important than full-attack mode.

Alonso had been linked with a sportscar move and possible one-off appearance for Porsche at the upcoming Le Mans 24 hours, which was reportedly thwarted by Honda.

As Alonso watches fellow Formula One driver Nico Hulkenberg race at Le Mans instead, one wonders if he will decide once and for all that there are better opportunities to show his skills outside of grand prix racing.

Unless the McLaren Honda shows some signs of improvements in the coming races, Alonso may very well decide to turn his back on Formula One.

close