Will Fernando Alonso return to F1?

This is where I really miss Frank and Ron.

If they were still around and still had the best cars, they would just put him in one of them, no matter what comes out of his mouth. If he can perform in the car, he'll be in one their cars..

I'm with you there.

 

So I started a thread to try and put an end to the complaining.

Fat chance. People constantly claim they want to see the best drivers in the best cars, but they really mean they want to see their fav "hopeful" get Bottas' drive. Alonso, if he were to return to F1 tomorrow, would be at worst the 4th or 5th best on the grid but somehow even suggesting that you would like to see him in any car makes you subject to attack.

Totally agree. F1 is better without him and his ego.

So just how is F1 better off without Fernado?

Never heard a fellow competitor say anything bad about his racing and on-track fairness. Well Massa used bleat a lot, but he then was getting taken apart, so who wouldn't?

Alonso only hung around in 1st and 2nd for the first half of the 2018 season(that's like last year) and fell back to 5th in the fan and magazine driver ratings when McLaren dropped out of the development race. You're saying nobody rated him last year, but even if they did he must be washed up by now?

He has a massive world wide fan base, to whom he is warm and accessible to.

Only driver I know who has a modern museum with all of his race cars, the helmets of every F1 driver he's raced against, and a dedicated karting track with lots of kids programs and packages.

He lives in his country of origin and takes a major tax hit to support it in hard times. He could easily live in Monaco or other tax friendly state, like many others.

Never mind that he smashed every driver he teamed up with in the last fifteen years, save for a slouch named Hamilton, and it was a draw but for a count back. Now I realize that Kimi and Massa hardly rate, and it wasn't fair because evil Alonso designed a car that only he could drive. Oh, and he somehow got all the engineers and the good mechanics to love him only, and not the other two. What a jerk!

The Tiffosi loved him from day one and he gave himself to them, while carrying the team on his back through some very tough times. When it was time to go, he left as gracefully as possible, only made odious by a hatchet man named Mattiachi.

So if you say that he has no place in F1 as a senior star driver, then you better put up some names and numbers in the current grid who could go head to head and beat him in a team or on the track. I bet you can't get past three.

So yeah, "Totally agree. F1 is better without him and his ego." phff

Edited by revmeister, 08 August 2019 - 03:01.

So you are a bit of a fan then?

I think he would make a great commentator.

I don't know what you mean JP. The great man almost qualified for Indy this year in what let's remember is as close to a spec series as makes no difference. Let's not forget he also won Le Mans which was effectively a two car race owing to the other car suffering a puncture. He has had an amazing season and once again shown himself to still be at the top of his game. Nothing left to prove.

You clearly have no idea what indycar is.

Joining Nico and JV for the pundit superteam to launch the BBC back into the forefront of F1 Coverage. 

Joining Nico and JV for the pundit superteam to launch the BBC back into the forefront of F1 Coverage.

Joining Nico and JV for the pundit superteam to launch the BBC back into the forefront of F1 Coverage.

Oh in Fernando's earlier days he was a bit of an enfent terribile....brake-testing DC at leat twice, some questionable on track moves....but he soon matured into WDC material and duly won two titles. But the there's the off-track politics...."spy-gate"....trashing his motorhome bathroom after a defeat....whining and bleating on the radio....I am not a fan of Fernando Alonso in those terms. However, in his Ferrari and second McLaren stint he seemed much more mature, calm even...certainly patient with poor machinery. There's no doubt he was and probably still is one of the best drivers out there. Were he to land a top F1 drive I doubt he'd squander it like Gasly....even if some of the magic has gone he'd be getting podiums. And part of me is sad that his career fizzled out in poor cars.

That said, where could he go?

Merc - No chance. Though the wounds have healed somewhat there remain scars. I doubt he or Lewis wish to be team-mates again nor would Merc take that risk. Toto has already stated that the 2020 drive is between Bottas and Ocon. If he did cast his net further, he's got Russell in his own stable. 

Ferrari - Only if Vettel storms off or is sacked mid-season and I don't see that happening. Seb believes in himself and his performances aren't bad enough to justify sacking him. If he leaves at the end of 2019 or 2020 Ferrari will probably look at Ricciardo, rather than Alonso.

RBR - Hell no....Honda won't even allow him to use an Indycar engine bearing their name. They feel their honour has been betrayed by his comments and will not reward such behaviour. And then....we can be sure Max is staying for the foreseeable....if they want to replace Gasly they have Kvyat doing well at Toro Rosso and Albon is hardly a slouch. Equally I expect Ricciardo would be amenable to being coaxed back.

Renault - Why? They're hardly doing better than McLaren were and aren't a short term prospect. Alonso is not a long term prospect

McLaren - Why? They're happy with Norris and Sainz. No reason to change either of them, and they surely represent the medium term future for McLaren

No other team is even worthy of being mentioned in the same breath. I mean would Alfa dropping Gio lead Alonso to leap into the car? Nope. 

Sadly I don't see anywhere for him to go, even if a final season or even half season battling for podiums would be a more fitting end to his F1 career.

I'd kind of like to see him do Indycar full time but only in a competitive machine...and one does not appear to be forthcoming. 

Oh in Fernando's earlier days he was a bit of an enfent terribile....brake-testing DC at leat twice, some questionable on track moves....

I think it was Robert Doornbos in the other Red Bull who he actually brake tested. Plus there was the whole not-slowing under yellows in Brazil thing.

But I think it's fair to say he got over that petulant on-track behavior a while back.

Edit: I found it.

The mainstream media constantly pushes the narrative that Alonso is a liability for the teams, and is an awful driver to work with. No wonder you're gonna have a lot of people complaining about him returning to F1.

 

 

like this, from the reputations topic:

Statman, on 25 August 2018 - 12:12, said:

 

The title of this topic is about Alonso's reputation and where it comes from. You're just playing with words to argue everything that has ever happened involving Alonso is just minor and Alonso can't be blamed for that. I get you're a fan, but it doesn't stroke with reality.

 

Especially with the idea that top teams don't want him. I've argued before that people in the paddock talk, for good reason. And he's about to add a new chapter with the Red Bull stuff.

 

But just a small sample size, quickly found from over the years:

 

Lauda: "Egocentric" Alonso was bad for Ferrari

 

Lauda: Alonso egocentric, dark and negative

 

Lauda: Alonso has made many mistakes

 

Lauda: 'Mercedes do not need Fernando Alonso'

 

Lauda: 'Alonso not on Mercedes wish list'

 

No room for Alonso at Mercedes, says Niki Lauda

 

Sky Sports F1

✔

@SkySportsF1

 Niki Lauda on possibility of Mercedes signing Alonso: "No. Confirmed." More: http://bit.ly/1vECLvn . #SkyF1 

11:45 AM - Oct 4, 2014

 

'Alonso? We're not interested,' says Sergio Marchionne

 

Marchionne: not interested in Alonso and there's no Verstappen deal/

 

Marchionne takes dig at Alonso in Vettel praise

 

Marchionne: Vettel more of a Ferrarista than Alonso was in five years

 

Ferrari told Alonso to be a team player

 

Fernando Alonso tactics unsettling team

 

Nico Rosberg causes a stir on Twitter with Fernando Alonso comments

 

Piquet: 'Alonso only has himself to blame'

 

Toto Wolff: Fernando Alonso would have ten world titles - if not for one problem

 

Wolff: Past 'history' will block Mercedes move for Alonso

 

Alonso 'threatened to expose McLaren' if not made No 1

 

Hamilton: Alonso relationship was toxic

 

Marko: Fernando Alonso's approach 'too political'

 

---

 

All of this did not happen, it's fake news. All designed to paint Alonso in a bad light. I repeat: all of this DID NOT HAPPEN. Has nothing to do with Alonso

 

Edited by statman, 08 August 2019 - 09:37.

 

like this, from the reputations topic:

 

 

 

Are you saying this was a setup by the mainstream media to frame him? Come on..

 

I like how you keep spamming this but most of the articles are people who have never worked with him AND rehashed from similar sources.

Because I trust words of Domenicali, Pat Symonds, Rob Smedley, Paddy Lowe , Minardi and Jenson Button over people he has never worked it.

Low effort try harder.

I'm a huge fan and I really think he's one of the all time greats.

However, there were times when I wished he would have just kept quiet and simply let his driving do the talking.

He would have been more successful had he just been more patient and played the long game.

Lol....the most important question is who, (team) would want him back. Answer==> No One. 

He's poisonous attitude + mouth got him out of F1. 

So just how is F1 better off without Fernado?

 

Never heard a fellow competitor say anything bad about his racing and on-track fairness. Well Massa used bleat a lot, but he then was getting taken apart, so who wouldn't?

 

Alonso only hung around in 1st and 2nd for the first half of the 2018 season(that's like last year) and fell back to 5th in the fan and magazine driver ratings when McLaren dropped out of the development race. You're saying nobody rated him last year, but even if they did he must be washed up by now?

 

He has a massive world wide fan base, to whom he is warm and accessible to.

 

Only driver I know who has a modern museum with all of his race cars, the helmets of every F1 driver he's raced against, and a dedicated karting track with lots of kids programs and packages.

 

He lives in his country of origin and takes a major tax hit to support it in hard times. He could easily live in Monaco or other tax friendly state, like many others.

 

Never mind that he smashed every driver he teamed up with in the last fifteen years, save for a slouch named Hamilton, and it was a draw but for a count back. Now I realize that Kimi and Massa hardly rate, and it wasn't fair because evil Alonso designed a car that only he could drive. Oh, and he somehow got all the engineers and the good mechanics to love him only, and not the other two. What a jerk!

 

The Tiffosi loved him from day one and he gave himself to them, while carrying the team on his back through some very tough times. When it was time to go, he left as gracefully as possible, only made odious by a hatchet man named Mattiachi.

 

So if you say that he has no place in F1 as a senior star driver, then you better put up some names and numbers in the current grid who could go head to head and beat him in a team or on the track. I bet you can't get past three.

 

So yeah, "Totally agree. F1 is better without him and his ego." phff

Damn...i really want whatever you are smoking dude...seems fun to get lost from reality for a while

1. Blackmailing the CEO to ensure he gets preferential treatment

2. Cheating with a competitor's information

3. Helping to plan his team mate to crash his car, and win a race, and then pretends he knows nothing about it

4. Costing his team a 100 mil fine

5. That comment of putting down a supplier at their home grand prix

So yes, no one wants him and his ego in F1. 

Damn...i really want whatever you are smoking dude...seems fun to get lost from reality for a while

1. Blackmailing the CEO to ensure he gets preferential treatment

2. Cheating with a competitor's information

3. Helping to plan his team mate to crash his car, and win a race, and then pretends he knows nothing about it

4. Costing his team a 100 mil fine

5. That comment of putting down a supplier at their home grand prix

So yes, no one wants him and his ego in F1.

And once again, let's keep the fake news and myths rolling. It's amazing how this can keep as a true fact even after so many years.

At least 4 posters were refering to this "brake test" as a true fact in the past weeks in the silly season thread.

It's not fake news. The videos are no doubt out there, I used to record each and every race live back then and I have them....he was seen as a bit of a bad boy in those days, or at least a rough diamond needing a polish. And what's more, plenty of us remember it....it's not that long ago.

Please let's not rake over all Alonso's career mistakes in detail, we'll never get anywhere and everybody already knows the rap sheet.

 

like this, from the reputations topic:

 

Yeah, Marchionne was so right there. Just go with Vettel, a perfect tifoso and excatly what they deserved. His own mistakes making sure he won't dare to be critical of the scuderia. Just look how many team harmony championships Ferrari won since Alonso left, enough said!

I have no dogs in this fight, but Alonso is done in F1.

Too old, and too much baggage, even if you believe the latter is unfair. 

I like how you keep spamming this but most of the articles are people who have never worked with him AND rehashed from similar sources.

Because I trust words of Domenicali, Pat Symonds, Rob Smedley, Paddy Lowe , Minardi and Jenson Button over people he has never worked it.

 

Low effort try harder.

Such a team leader and good influence he was that ultimately even Montezemolo, his biggest admirer in the team, dropped him. Allegedly because Mr. Alonso wanted to decide on which tech. personnel was hired and especially thought of himself as the ur-saviour, larger than the team (& not even Schumacher did that). We're talking about the same Montezemolo who had previously dropped Costa & Domenicali as scape goats and I would like to know one day which, if any, part did Alonso play in the firing of Costa.   

One day the key actors will tell the whole story, but the fact that no F1 team wants to hire a driver of such calibre (for his talent cannot ever be discussed) is telling enough. 

I would very much love to see ALO back in F1, driving a championship contender, possibly Ferrari.

I say Ferrari deserves a lot more than what it is right now.

The real chances? I dunno how to measure it. 

If not,... I can say that Alonso to work on Indy 500 in a very exclusive deal with also a winning contender.

I believe he will bring up so much funding that there will be a real possibility.

This is very logical cation to me, as ALO insisted on triple crown.

The other day I was watching extreme E that looked like a outside contender as none seems to race on North Pole...

Still this series can be a disaster, asking for massive massive disaster.

Extremities that it wants to race are so bloody extreme, ...

Can you hear the drums, Fernando?

Alonso should swallow his pride and do a full Indycar season with Andretti. I don't believe Alonso has ever swallowed his pride but I think it would be good for his career and his legacy.

If anything, he shouldn't start now. As it is, he's the least corporate muppet of his generation, and certain (even if not many) people can appreciate that.

Interesting counter argument. I would encourage him not to swallow his pride in order to get back into the good books of the F1 paddock. But humbling yourself a bit to win the Indy 500 and do a year racing Indycars? That's worth it, surely.

Such a team leader and good influence he was that ultimately even Montezemolo, his biggest admirer in the team, dropped him. Allegedly because Mr. Alonso wanted to decide on which tech. personnel was hired and especially thought of himself as the ur-saviour, larger than the team (& not even Schumacher did that). We're talking about the same Montezemolo who had previously dropped Costa & Domenicali as scape goats and I would like to know one day which, if any, part did Alonso play in the firing of Costa.   

One day the key actors will tell the whole story, but the fact that no F1 team wants to hire a driver of such calibre (for his talent cannot ever be discussed) is telling enough. 

Montezemolo left way before Alonso did.               

It's not fake news. The videos are no doubt out there, I used to record each and every race live back then and I have them....he was seen as a bit of a bad boy in those days, or at least a rough diamond needing a polish. And what's more, plenty of us remember it....it's not that long ago.

Alonso should swallow his pride and do a full Indycar season with Andretti. I don't believe Alonso has ever swallowed his pride but I think it would be good for his career and his legacy.

Edited by Henri Greuter, 08 August 2019 - 11:24.

I think people at car manufacturers who understand racing know to expect silliness from the drivers. Ultimately they are the one risking their bodies out on the track so it's right that they should be given more latitude to act out.
 
It's different when it's executive-to-executive. Zak Brown made a mistake thinking that he had the same licence as Alonso to criticize his engine supplier. IMHO.
 
That's not to say I think any team should welcome Alonso back with open arms. If they think he'll destabilize the team or cause them to lose focus, they're entitled to pass however quick he is. But it makes sense to me that Honda USA's problem is with McLaren and not Fred.

That is all true but he's also the greatest talent of his generation (asterisk on a doubt whether he's better than Hamilton or not but Hamilton is younger so let's not count him), was still freakishly fast as of last year, and plenty of teams have turned a blind eye to all that, including the very teams he pissed off, when the circumstances provided them with the necessity. So all it takes for Alonso to be back is the circumstances to slightly change. It's not a given but I'll take my odds that it'll most likely happen than not.

dont get me wrong my friend. I still rank him the best since Schumacher. Not Hamilton, Kimi, or Vettel. 

It's Alonso. 

I still think Alonso was working under instructions/encouragement of the McLaren management to be the one that hits out at Honda, like an indirect spokesperson, to put the blame of the underperformance on the engine and not the chassis... Not that it puts him under any better light, because he seemed sincerely fed up with the engine too and it was just a dumb thing to do.

Of course it was, you can even tell by Dennis reactions after the race and body language. And if it was not planned by all of them, at least they didn't mind because they wanted to trigger a reaction in Honda.

So the Alonso haters have simply switched threads, to restate what has already been stated.

I don't see him returning, I don't want to see him return (unless he's in a top car and can be challenging for wins - otherwise he'd be just another one of those drivers whose glory days are over but they can't retire gracefully).

Also, I've no idea what he will be doing in 2020 either (so I'm not sure why that was not an option on the poll)

I don't think he will return.

So much nonsense here but I'll just address this one:

RBR - Hell no....Honda won't even allow him to use an Indycar engine bearing their name.  

They won't? Except for the fact that they did. In the past year. In the Barber test.

Edited by AustinF1, 08 August 2019 - 14:55.

Such a team leader and good influence he was that ultimately even Montezemolo, his biggest admirer in the team, dropped him. Allegedly because Mr. Alonso wanted to decide on which tech. personnel was hired and especially thought of himself as the ur-saviour, larger than the team (& not even Schumacher did that). We're talking about the same Montezemolo who had previously dropped Costa & Domenicali as scape goats and I would like to know one day which, if any, part did Alonso play in the firing of Costa.   

One day the key actors will tell the whole story, but the fact that no F1 team wants to hire a driver of such calibre (for his talent cannot ever be discussed) is telling enough. 

Montezemolo left way before Alonso did.               

LOL, yep. What the hell?

Alonso should swallow his pride and do a full Indycar season with Andretti. I don't believe Alonso has ever swallowed his pride but I think it would be good for his career and his legacy.

I dunno who it would be with if and when he decides to do a full IndyCar season, and he's said he's not doing one next year ... but there sure is a lot of noise about McLaren trying to get a full-season effort going for next year. So maybe that's on the table again for Fernando for 2020. Honestly I think if he does want to come back to F1 (as he's indicated with the comments about still coming back if a top seat were to be available), then it makes a lot of sense to do a full IndyCar season in 2020 and then try to return to F1 in 2021 when everyone will be in new cars. Don't some key contracts end after 2020 as well? Could be interesting. I'm not ruling out the possibility of a 2020 return, but WeWillSee.

With Andretti now again committed to Honda, that is gonna be difficult.
There are sources who state the Honda USA only refused to work with McLaren and not minding dealing with Alonso. But I still wonder it this was not a kind of PR friendly message they dared to make, knowing that Alonso was committed to McLaren and thus any plan to work with Alonso with another Honda powered team not on the cards.
I am still wondering about what Honda USA, and the general management of Honda would have said/done had Alonso not been driving for McLaren and intended to drive a Honda powered entry of whatever team. Honda may well have shown way other true colors in such a situation. And this can be extended to next season, hence my doubts about signing with Andretti.

Andretti has stated specifically that even though Honda won't work with McLaren or Brown, they'll work with Alonso.

Which, now that I think about it, begs the question: "How does he know that so intimately that he'll say it publicly?" Have there been talks between Andretti and Alonso? And his team is the face of Honda in IndyCar. Surely he wouldn't say that publicly if it weren't true, at the risk of pissing off Honda.

Edited by AustinF1, 08 August 2019 - 14:59.

I don't see him returning, I don't want to see him return (unless he's in a top car and can be challenging for wins - otherwise he'd be just another one of those drivers whose glory days are over but they can't retire gracefully).

 

Also, I've no idea what he will be doing in 2020 either (so I'm not sure why that was not an option on the poll)

Yeah I was looking for that option as well...

I don't see him returning, I don't want to see him return (unless he's in a top car and can be challenging for wins - otherwise he'd be just another one of those drivers whose glory days are over but they can't retire gracefully).

 

Also, I've no idea what he will be doing in 2020 either (so I'm not sure why that was not an option on the poll)

Yeah I was looking for that option as well...

Apologies.

By now we've seen and heard that Honda doesn't want to work with McLaren for the time being, but nothing specifically about Alonso has been mentioned by a direct source (it's all extrapolated speculation - which still is speculation). On the other hand, we've seen Alonso drive an Andretti car less than a year ago at a test at Barber Motorsports Park (September 2018). Guess which engine was in the back?



Off-topic, but I still hope McLaren and Honda get to work together again at some point, and preferably in IndyCar. There's potential in that collaboration and who knows maybe someday we get to see it.

Apologies.

No worries! If that's the worst part of my day, then it's gonna be a great day, to be sure!

So just how is F1 better off without Fernado?

Never heard a fellow competitor say anything bad about his racing and on-track fairness. Well Massa used bleat a lot, but he then was getting taken apart, so who wouldn't?

Alonso only hung around in 1st and 2nd for the first half of the 2018 season(that's like last year) and fell back to 5th in the fan and magazine driver ratings when McLaren dropped out of the development race. You're saying nobody rated him last year, but even if they did he must be washed up by now?

He has a massive world wide fan base, to whom he is warm and accessible to.

Only driver I know who has a modern museum with all of his race cars, the helmets of every F1 driver he's raced against, and a dedicated karting track with lots of kids programs and packages.

He lives in his country of origin and takes a major tax hit to support it in hard times. He could easily live in Monaco or other tax friendly state, like many others.

Never mind that he smashed every driver he teamed up with in the last fifteen years, save for a slouch named Hamilton, and it was a draw but for a count back. Now I realize that Kimi and Massa hardly rate, and it wasn't fair because evil Alonso designed a car that only he could drive. Oh, and he somehow got all the engineers and the good mechanics to love him only, and not the other two. What a jerk!

The Tiffosi loved him from day one and he gave himself to them, while carrying the team on his back through some very tough times. When it was time to go, he left as gracefully as possible, only made odious by a hatchet man named Mattiachi.

So if you say that he has no place in F1 as a senior star driver, then you better put up some names and numbers in the current grid who could go head to head and beat him in a team or on the track. I bet you can't get past three.

So yeah, "Totally agree. F1 is better without him and his ego." phff