At 43, Fernando Alonso continues to be relevant and thriving not just in F1 but also in pop culture. The Spaniard’s popularity boomed in April 2023 when unfounded dating links with Taylor Swift went viral. Riding on the virality wave, Alonso notoriously fueled the rumors further with his playful shenanigans. From using Swift’s songs in his TikToks to making clever references during interviews, he gave it his all to stay relevant.
Fernando Alonso uploads a Tiktok with a Taylor Swift song.
He definitely knows pic.twitter.com/IIK9gv4NRj
— formularacers (@formularacers_) April 24, 2023
The rumors ultimately settled down once Swift went public with her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs star — Travis Kelce. However, the lull was only momentary until the album The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology came out earlier this year. A part of the lyrics of the song imgonnagetyouback made a reference to Aston Martin. That was enough to send Alonso fans into a frenzy.
The Aston Martin driver has once again become a talking point in pop culture. For a change, it is Charli XCX who’s the reason behind it, not Taylor Swift. The British music icon’s 8-year-old song Vroom Vroom has resurfaced among the F1 fans, due to a possible reference to Alonso and the biggest controversy of his career — the Crashgate.
Akin to imgonnagetyouback, a section of Vroom Vroom’s lyrics have become the center of attention. A part of the second verse of the song reads, “Speedin’ like Alonso just to crash your party.” While the reference to Fernando Alonso is clear, many on the internet are interpreting “crash” to be an explicit reference to the Crashgate.
vroom vroom by charli xcx potentially being a crash gate reference i’m crying pic.twitter.com/TNMZdTHwB6
— flo ⁸¹ ☆ (@flolovesstars) August 9, 2024
Crashgate remains one of the biggest controversial moments in F1’s vast history. During the 2008 Singapore GP, Alonso’s Renault teammate, Nelson Piquet Jr. intentionally crashed to give the Spaniard a massive advantage. That advantage eventually proved to be enough to give him the race win.
Piquet Jr. came clean on the move a year later after Renault sacked him. The FIA took notice of the evidence and ultimately ruled to indefinitely ban Renault team boss — Flavio Briatore from all F1 events. While a French court later lifted the ban on Briatore, the controversy remains a massive blot on the sport’s integrity.
