Fernando Alonso is currently enjoying his best start to a Formula One season since 2013 and in fact scoring more points in the first five races than in any year since 2010; would have been something nobody said ahead of 2023.
The mercurial 41-year old and two-time world champion at last finds himself back at the pointy end of a Formula One field, with the unexpected emergence of Aston Martin, as a regular podium finisher and currently the only driver beyond the dominant Red Bulls with the feintest shot of a win.
A feeling in Formula One that the Spaniard now has gone a decade without, with 10-years having passed since Alonso won his home race in 2013.
While there is plenty of disbelief that it has been that long since a driver of his calibre has been winless, there no surprise given the many missteps Alonso is synonymous with.
Without delving into the often Shakespearean tragedy Alonso’s career has been in detail, as done previously on this column, the 2010s saw the Spaniard narrowly miss on further championship glory with Ferrari, before jumping ship to the ill-fated McLaren-Honda project for four painful and then ultimately leaving the sport in 2018 for a crack at other racing disciplines.
It was after seeing his multiple wins at Le Mans, the World Endurance Championship and attempts at the Indy 500 and the Dakar Rally did it stung again; that this was a Formula One driver who should’ve been more successful than he was.
So when the prospect of an Alonso return to Formula One was murmured for 2021, it wouldn’t be truly satisfying unless he was able to win again. Which with Alpine née Renault – where he won his two championships in 2005 and 2006 – was far from bearing fruit.
Though when it was announced that Alonso would be replacing his retiring old rival and fellow world champion in Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin – who’d finished an uninspiring seventh in the standings last year – there were serious questions marks over the Spaniard’s motivation to win again.
However, nobody could have predicted that the Silverstone outfit bankrolled by billionaire Lawrence Stroll and undergoing rampant development, would’ve jumped out of the doldrums of the midfield and into being the second best team behind Red Bull this year.
Fernando Alonso of Spain (Photo by Peter Fox/Getty Images)
Not only have they left the likes of Alonso’s former team Alpine in their wake, but even Ferrari and Aston’s power-unit supplier Mercedes are finding themselves behind the Spaniard, who sits a handsome third in the standings with four podiums from five races.
A refreshed technical department headed up by former Red Bull protégé Dan Fallows have nailed a gun design for the AMR23, ironically inspired by the world-beating Red Bull and Alonso himself; long renowned teammate dominator has been publicly praising teammate Lance Stroll during live races. So many unexpected twists!
When asked by Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle about whether he could finally break that winless drought, Alonso’s answer was “I think so, yes.”
“We seem to have a car that is maybe not the fastest on the straights. We need to improve that, but we are very good on the corners. So, I would say the slowest speeds of the championship, let’s say Monaco, Budapest, Singapore. These kind of circuits, I think we put our main hopes at the moment.”
So while his talent was never in doubt and we can anticipate a win not being far off, it was always the career choices and of which Aston Martin could’ve potentially also been another backfire. But with everything in the right place, it is truly a delight to see the Formula One great back amongst the top guns where he belongs.
Jawad Yaqub
Roar Guru
A bit Mansell-esqe seeing him mixing it with the young guns. Yeah, there was no doubt about his ability or his talent - just shocking career choices. Alpine were a bit foolish to let him go, but we all know how good they are with driver retention... And after the lambasting from Laurent Rossi recently, they're an organisation that anyone would probably want to stay away from. I like being proven wrong (maybe not completely) about Aston Martin and Alonso's decision to go there. Overall it is down to the teams to get their acts together and take the fight to Red Bull and none of this 'have F1 or the FIA to intervene and nerf them' malarkey. Aston Martin is the proof of a team getting their act together and making those gains organically.
Simoc
Roar Rookie
It is but Alonso is driving fantastically well. I reckon he would have been up there in the Alpine as well. I think he has got Stroll driving faster. He has great confidence in the car so seems able to put it anywhere and be comfortable. So while Aston Martin have been great the Mercs and Ferraris are going backwards to meet up with the midfield. These cars have the best drivers out there but are closer to the midfield than the front. It's hard to believe that Mercedes didn't listen to Hamiltons advice on the car and decided they had it right. Also poor form for Toto Wolff. Hamilton got them there and with Bottas they did everything he said. Now with Russell at number 2 and the heir apparent they're listening to him and falling back. F1 really needs McLaren to get their act together. They get it wrong so regularly and Norris deserves better. I'm hoping Piastri stays close and becomes Audis man when they take over Alfa Romeo. They will want a top driver and Piastri appears to have the ability, but its early days. But back to Alonso. It would be great to see him able to fight for wins with Verstappen and Hamilton with hopefully LeClerc getting involved. Those guys are a cut above the rest and watching them duking it out at the front would be special. They are now for the crumbs but Verstappens is so far ahead .