Fernando Alonso’s departure from the Formula One team has been essentially confirmed by former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo, who also revealed the driver’s justifications for ending his two-year deal early.
Although Alonso or Ferrari have not yet made an official announcement, Di Montezemolo informed the Italian network RAI (via Sky Sports) that the Spaniard has bigger goals than what has so far been accomplished:
“Alonso is leaving for two reasons. The first is that he needs a change of scenery. Second, he is at an age where he is impatient to win once more. He desired new stimuli since he was dissatisfied with his lack of success in recent years.”
Alonso has managed to place second in the world standings three times since joining Ferrari in 2010 (in 2010, 2012, and 2013), although he is presently having his worst season with the Italian powerhouses, sitting in sixth with three races left in 2014.
It’s far from the expectations he would have had after claiming world championships with Renault in 2005 and 2006. He seems most likely to end up at McLaren.
Additionally, it is believed that Sebastian Vettel is the guy who is anticipated to succeed Alonso at Ferrari. Sky Sports’ Mike Wise had already stated that this season will be the German’s final with Red Bull.
Which club Alonso will represent next is complicated by the amount of time left on his Ferrari contract. Alonso responded, “I don’t think so,” when asked by NBC (through James Galloway of Sky Sports) whether he would be racing for a McLaren in 2015.
It’s even suggested by BBC Sport that the 33-year-old may have to take a year off from competing until his affairs are settled, but it’s hard to imagine that happening:
Only twice this year has Alonso managed to place third, and his chances of doing so are quite limited. Even that would be out of reach if Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth or higher in the US Grand Prix next month.
Ferrari’s star has consistently achieved podium prominence during his lengthy title drought, but this season will mark his lowest number of top-three finishes since 2009.
It will only be the fourth time in Alonso’s career that he hasn’t won a calendar race, with two of those happening in his first four years as a Formula One driver, if he doesn’t finish first in any of the year’s last three races.
Although it has been rumored for some time that the two would be splitting ways, Di Montezemolo is not helping his former company by outing the truth about Alonso’s fate in advance of what will actually happen.
The specifics of Alonso’s future are still up in the air, but despite all the diversions obstructing his vision, he will undoubtedly keep his attention firmly concentrated on the current campaign.
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Alonso: “Ferrari is still not winning in 2021.
Indicating that Ferrari has yet to win since his departure, Fernando Alonso said he had no regrets about leaving.
Alonso joined the Scuderia in 2010 and raced for the Italian team through the 2014 season, completing P2 in the Drivers’ Championship three times.
Alonso decided to leave the team in 2014 as they struggled with a new power unit, but many people were shocked to learn that McLaren would be his new home as they had also had trouble adjusting to the new era of Formula 1.
“I never look back on any of my choices. If you had a crystal ball, you could have made a different choice at some time, but I always felt like I made the right choice.
The 39-year-old driver, who spent a few seasons off the grid, is back in the sport this year with Alpine.
To his prior statement about acting morally when the situation called for it, he added, “With Alpine it’s the same.” “After two years away from the sport, I believe I face the most difficulties in this regard. Although decisions are made and obligations are assumed, with Ferrari the time was ideal.
“In 2014, we had five successful seasons and three of the seasons saw title fights go down to the wire. The atmosphere and the bond between Ferrari and I were both amazing. But the moment was right. At some point, the connection breaks down, and we yearned for only the love.
Over the years, it has been clear that Alonso may not be the easiest to deal with and that he occasionally irritates people, but his success on the track has partially supported that claimed arrogance.
It also shows that his relationships with those he has worked with cannot be all that awful as he has returned to Alpine after previously working with the team on two different occasions under a different name.
Alonso continued, “I’ve driven for Renault three times and McLaren twice. “They should be delighted with me since I’ve been on several other teams and I’ve done it before. Otherwise, I’m not sure why they phoned me.
I continue to speak with [Giancarlo] Fisichella, and [Jarno] Trulli, who lives in the same town as me, called me after the accident to offer his assistance if I needed anything from the grocery store.
As a result, I gave Esteban Ocon an FA Racing kart this week so he could drive, in addition to Stoffel Vandoorne, Jenson Button, and now Esteban Ocon.
“For this reason, I laugh, as all of my teammates were then and are now close friends. The same thing happened to me in Dakar; I had to lend [Nasser] Al Attiyah a tire.
“Having this reputation can occasionally be beneficial because people are often shocked and delighted to learn that I am normal.”
After breaking his jaw during a bike ride, Alonso is back in Formula One.
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Fernando Alonso’s aptitude for reading a race and understanding of Formula 1 have been praised by a former coworker. During his time with the Italian squad, it has been discovered that the Spaniard frequently exited the Ferrari pit wall with a crimson face.
An ending
According to history, it was a mistake for Alonso to leave Ferrari for a McLaren team that was already having trouble in 2014 even with Mercedes engines and that was beginning a new partnership with a manufacturer that was not yet prepared to compete in Formula 1.
But why, in addition, did McLaren reinstate Alonso following everything that transpired in 2007?
Dennis once revealed to me in a surprisingly candid and casual conversation: “One thing you shouldn’t overlook is how young he was when he entered Formula One, who was in his immediate environment and had an influence on him, and how he evolved a much better and more experienced approach to his racing.
“Fernando Alonso was a totally different person when he joined with McLaren in this most recent period than when he signed to end his partnership with Renault.
“I’m referring to the fact that, in contrast to the typical 10-degree inclination of a young person’s learning curve, his was more like 45 degrees. In other words, he experienced an extremely rapid learning curve that drastically altered his personality.
“In the first year, he was incredibly patient and understanding; in the second, not so much. After that, of course, it was just plain frustrating. At any other point in his career, that guy would never have been able to handle it the way he did during that time.
“Why did I return him? Because he was available to us, I still think he’s one of, if not the finest driver in Formula One, and I thought it was best for the team because he’d grown up.
Alonso would have won this year’s drivers’ championship, according to insiders inside Ferrari, if he had been driving the vehicle instead of Vettel.
Alonso contrasts this by stating that since he left, Mercedes has won the championship each year.
“Because if you are not succeeding with Ferrari, a lot is going on, and I believe that five years was enough time. It’s hard to conceive that this would be my sixth season in Formula One without a victory for Ferrari.”
However, how could Alonso have avoided realizing that McLaren and Honda were far from ready to win in 2015 and coming to the conclusion that Ferrari, despite their issues, was the best place for him to be?
In many ways, his career has been a series of poor choices repeated. According to a source close to him, “In the end, Fernando continued to receive lousy counsel, and the past was repeated.
“He signed to return to Renault when he ought to have stayed with McLaren. He signed with Ferrari when he ought to have switched to Red Bull. He signed with McLaren when he ought to have remained with Ferrari. Unfortunately, he never made a decision alone, and it was always the wrong one.”
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Fernando Alonso spent five years with Ferrari and twice came extremely close to winning the F1 world championship with the club, but he finally fell short at the line. What were the Spanishman’s areas of weakness? In an interesting and comprehensive debate on the upcoming episode of the official F1 podcast, Beyond The Grid, supported by Bose, which comes out on Wednesday, Luca Di Montezemolo, who presided over the Prancing Horse during Alonso’s tenure, offers his opinions on that same subject.
Alonso came close to winning the F1 championship with Ferrari in 2010 and 2012, but Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull won both times, giving him a four-peat of world titles. At the conclusion of 2014, Alonso made the decision to sever his relationship with the storied Italian team in favor of a fresh start with McLaren.
Di Montezemolo cited Alonso’s personality as one factor in why he might not have achieved the same level of success at Ferrari as multiple world champions Michael Schumacher or Niki Lauda. He wasn’t Alonso-Ferrari; he was Alonso, according to Di Montezemolo. He is content when he succeeds. When he loses, the team is to blame and he is dissatisfied.
In other words, he is not as close to the group as Michael and Niki, especially during trying times. In good times, it’s simple to feel close to the squad.
Fernando gave an excellent performance. Alonso is racing alongside [Lewis] Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, and Michael for me. Alonso was and continues to be a great driver. It was not his fault that he lost the championship [in 2010 and 2012].
If he had won a single championship, the topic would be different now. We are talking about Alonso, who managed to win the title despite not always having the greatest car. Strong like a bear, Alonso. a
Subscribe to Beyond The Grid on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast app right away to receive the whole Di Montezemolo episode, replete with other exciting findings, immediately to your device on Wednesday, March 27.
Why did Alonso quit McLaren?
Although there were no open seats at the large teams, Alonso claimed that his decision to leave Formula 1 at the end of 2018 was not due to his inability to obtain a drive at a top team. Instead, he claimed that he intended to take on greater challenges outside of Formula 1.