Fernando Alonso is on a roll since the season began. The Spaniard has already secured podiums in both races so far and is getting closer to his 36 grand prix victory. But just a year back the 2x world champion was ridiculed for leaving Alpine for his new team.
The driver was criticised for cutting ties with his former employees and jumping ship to Aston Martin without notice. Critics said Alonso must consider retirement and move on from the sport citing his age.
The GOATs club just got even GOATier 🐐#SaudiArabianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/6qZKy1N2S2
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 20, 2023
But despite being the oldest driver on the grid, he has achieved 100 career podiums. The driver believes he would have never accomplished this feat had he stayed with the French team.
Fernando Alonso believes leaving Alpine was the best thing he did
Alonso briefly retired from the sport in 2018 after a disastrous stint with McLaren. He attempted IndyCar and Le Mans but had been waiting for an opportunity to return to F1 for a while. And that happened in 2021 with Alpine.
He said, “Since returning to F1 with Alpine in 2021, I have been preparing myself. I was waiting for the new rules to be closer to victories. It did not happen in 2022 with Alpine, but it was a year to prepare well.”
Is it finally time for # 3⃣3⃣ ?#F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/99asoRvVgg
— F1 StatsGuru (@f1statsguru) March 18, 2023
Alonso claims he has been working hard despite his age and believes he can still win races if he has a competitive car. The 41-year-old racer believes he wanted to return to his 2005-06 Championship winning form again
He added, “Starting in the middle of the year, I signed with Aston Martin, I already started thinking about Aston Martin. It was personal for me. If I don’t continue with Alpine, I wanted to be the best version of myself in these 20 years.”
Can Alonso win races in 2023?
Alonso is enjoying his perfect start to the season. The Spaniard claims the team are yet to close the gap to Red Bull, but the pace they have shown is on par or better than Mercedes and Ferrari have exhibited.
The Aston Martin driver won his last race in 2013 at the Spanish GP. Since then the Spaniard has been out of touch with his winning side. But this year could be different for him.
He said, “We have started well, with two podiums, but Red Bull is in another league. So, you have to keep your feet on the ground.”
Ohhhhhh Fernando Alonso, Ohhhhh Fernando Alonso!
❤️ So much love in the @AstonMartinF1 garage ❤️#SaudiArabianGP #F1 @alo_oficial pic.twitter.com/Fl4rNjXARD
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 21, 2023
With the AMR23 able to grab podiums in both races so far, the 2x World Champion is driving his most competitive car since his Ferrari days. And the racer is patiently waiting for the right opportunity.
He added, “There will come a race that we are going to do sixth or seventh. But we are going to try to delay it as much as possible and continue making great performances.”
The former Renaut driver claims both Ferrari and Mercedes are much bigger teams and will improve over time. But as of now the Spanish driver stands 3rd in the Championship and will want to register his first top-3 Championship finish since 2013.
