On Wednesday, Carlos Alcaraz directed a question to Fernando Alonso which the entirety of Spain has been buzzing with. The current tennis No.1 asked when will we see the 2x World Champion claim his 33rd win.
The Aston Martin laughed off after showing appreciation to his fellow Spaniard. But the trend is generating a lot of momentum in Spain following Alonso’s podiums in Jeddah and Bahrain.
Alonso too has been chasing his 33rd win for a decade. His last race win came at the 2013 Spanish GP while he was driving for Ferrari. However, with Aston Martin looking like dark horses this season, the 41-year-old can finally break the spell.
Fernando Alonso talks about the “33” trend
Formula 1 fans in Spain have been eagerly awaiting for Fernando Alonso to claim his 33rd race win. The Spaniard was asked about the trending meme ahead of the 2023 Australian GP.
To which defending champion Max Verstappen interrupted saying, “It’s a good number!” Alonso wittily replied to the Dutchman, “I should ask if he’s still using Number One, I will ask for 33 next year!”
But the 2x world champion was humbled to see the F1 fanbase in Spain growing based on the current trend. Especially Alonso fans who have waited for years to see the driver race in a competitive car.
Alonso acknowledged, “It’s crazy to see how Spain is now so enthusiastic again about Formula 1 and for everything that is happening. Hopefully, they enjoyed these first two podiums.”
The Spaniard predicts his home race, Spanish Gp this year will be crazy. And as for the memes, the racer hopes to deliver number 33, and more.
Verstappen claims Alonso deserves more wins
Fernando Alonso fans have been pretty creative with their memes. First, it was El Plan in 2021, and then The Mission, and now 33. However, they would be glad to see their driver in a good car after struggling for years in non-competitive cars.
Even current champion Max Verstappen agreed with the fans. He said, “I think Fernando should have won, already, a lot more races than he has done. I think he deserves a lot more.”
Verstappen added, “I would be quite happy to see him win number 33. But I also, in a way, also would like to see him win more. So we’ll see in the coming race.”
2013 was Alonso’s last season in a good car. He drove for Ferrari and managed to finish P2 in the standings behind champion Sebastian Vettel. But the following year Ferrari struggled to win a single race in a disappointing car.
He moved to McLaren in 2015, but Alonso’s struggles increased. The Spaniard was left frustrated due to poor reliability and the slow pace of the Honda-powered cars. The driver retired from F1 in 2018 but returned back with Alpine in 2020.
Alpine managed to provide him with a good midfield car for 2 years. But there were issues with regard to pace and reliability. Finally, Aston Martin has provided the 2x champion with a car good enough to contend for wins. And it’ll be fun to watch the 41-year-old driver secure a race win after a decade.
