Why is Alonso, at 41, trading for a team that leaves a team five places and 79 points worse off in the Championship? What is it about Aston Martin? And what are the implications for Alpine? With F1 now on its summer break, Ted Kravitz – Sky Sports F1 reporter and paddock expert – gave his insight into the move, what sparked it, who it suits and more after Aston Martin found a direct replacement of the champion of many worlds. for Sebastian Vettel…

Initial reaction to the F1 bomb transfer

Ted Kravitz: “I don’t think there’s any shame in saying that this was a surprise to everyone! “Obviously Fernando is out of contract and has been looking around the big teams. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz heads to Asturias in northern Spain to find out what still drives Alpine’s Fernando Alonso and the legacy he wants to leave for Spanish motorsport.
Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz heads to Asturias in northern Spain to find out what still drives Alpine’s Fernando Alonso and the legacy he wants to leave for Spanish motorsport. “He admitted when I spoke to him before the Spanish Grand Prix that he would be happy to go to any big team and be number two to Charles Leclerc or Max Verstappen, so his mind was clearly not on staying at Alpine. Or at best. , staying at Alpine would be a second option to joining a big team. “Well, on those terms, it’s perhaps not entirely unexpected that he was considering a move.” Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player Former F1 driver Felipe Massa has his say on Fernando Alonso who announced his move to Aston Martin earlier on Monday.
Former F1 driver Felipe Massa has his say on Fernando Alonso who announced his move to Aston Martin earlier on Monday.

Why did Alonso choose Aston Martin?

Ted: “For Alonso, if his mind is not on staying at Alpine and with other avenues closed, he can look at what Aston Martin is building. “They have a lot of people from Red Bull, Dan Fallows, for example, arrived as technical director and started coming to races and Alonso will know about him and others. “He will also know there is money there and he thought this was the best option. “But what does that say about Alpine? Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg says there should be no debate that Fernando Alonso deserves his place in F1.
2016 world champion Nico Rosberg says there should be no debate that Fernando Alonso deserves his place in F1.
“Christian Horner, in one of his sometimes not-so-constructive jokes about Renault during the Red Bull engine deal, would say that Renault F1 is a team that wants first class, but is prepared to pay economy only.Perhaps Fernando has seen it too? “Perhaps he has seen that there is not a level of investment that he has seen at Aston Martin and Alpine is ready to go on, to aim for fourth place in the manufacturers? Does it serve Renault’s wishes just to keep the Alpine name there and to compete at a certain level? “I wonder if Fernando saw a lack of ambition that he hadn’t seen during his time as a Renault factory driver. That’s why he chose to look elsewhere.”

An Aston-powered move or an Alpine-induced move?

Ted: “Aston Martin, when they found out Sebastian Vettel wasn’t going to drive there, I think they felt they needed a big name. “They are a team that have very high ambitions, so I think their view was that we could get a Nyck de Vries or an Oscar Piastri, but these are guys who don’t really have any experience. “Well, they did great! Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player Fernando Alonso made his feelings for Yuki Tsunoda clear by wagging his finger at the AlphaTauri driver mid-race!
Fernando Alonso made his feelings for Yuki Tsunoda clear by wagging his finger at the AlphaTauri driver mid-race! “There is also the prospect that Alpine did not want to continue with Alonso and wanted to promote Oscar Piastri. “I haven’t seen any evidence of that – it’s not impossible – but I haven’t. The whole race team absolutely loves Fernando and he can do amazing things with the car. “So I don’t think it was Alpine’s choice to let him go. But then with Piastri in the lineup, it’s not really an issue for them. “They’ve got the guy they wanted to promote, they thought they were going to put him somewhere else, and that’s not going to happen. So the drivers that Piastri was going to replace can breathe a sigh of relief.”

Is it a huge gamble for Alonso to drop the grid?

Ted: “It’s pretty typical of Fernando Alonso’s career behavior that he’s betting on a marked improvement over the next three years! “That’s the other thing though that I find a bit strange about the whole thing, that at best it will take three years before Aston Martin can win races and challenge for championships. By then, Fernando will be 44 years old. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player Anthony Davidson takes a look at Fernando Alonso’s superb first lap at the French Grand Prix.
Anthony Davidson takes a look at Fernando Alonso’s superb first lap at the French Grand Prix.
“He’s as fit as a fiddle and he’s as F1 as he’s ever been, his break has rejuvenated him and he’s not running out of power like Sebastian Vettel. But, really? And does that mean Alpine was never going to get there? “Or is he just looking for one more team to see what he could do, a different challenge? “It’s all a bit weird.”

What fits?

Ted: “I thought it was interesting in the press release that Lawrence Stroll said that Fernando is a ‘committed winner like me’. “I think these two alpha males, if they work together and constructively, then they can push the team forward. “There will be concerns from Alonso fans that if things don’t go his way, then you have two potentially fiery characters against each other. “But I don’t see any reason why they can’t be productive and push the team.”

Is Mercedes power a factor in the deal?

Ted: “What it also does is reunite Fernando with the Mercedes engine family, which I think is an interesting angle. Fernando hasn’t been powered by Mercedes since he left McLaren the first time under a cloud 15 years ago. “So he would need a sign-off from Toto Wolff, which he obviously got. “Is it ridiculous to think that Mercedes wanted Fernando back in their family to see what he was like? “If Lewis decides he’s going to leave for whatever reason, and they need a world champion to sit alongside George, it wouldn’t be the end of the world if Mercedes had some visibility into what Fernando was like, even as a 41-year-old ? “You might have thought it was unlikely, but as this announcement proves – anything is possible in F1!”