Fernando Alonso faked ‘no signal’ excuse to Alpine boss moments before posting Instagram picture

If burning bridges were a sport, Fernando Alonso would have won more than 2 Championships. The driver has had terrible exits from all his past teams. And the most recent victim of his stunts was Alpine.

On August 1st 2022, Aston Martin announced Alonso as their 2023 driver on its social media account. The Spaniard would replace the retiring Sebastian Vettel. And all hell broke loose once the announcement became public.

Nobody had expected Alonso to be moving to Aston, even Alpine. Alpine, on the other hand, was going through another crisis after Oscar Piastri declined to sign any contract to drive for the team.

 

Turns out, Alonso’s former Team Principal, Otmar Szafnauer claims he wasn’t even informed by his team that he would be leaving.

Also Read: $15 Million Fernando Alonso hiring was hidden from Aston Martin boss, claims F1 journalist

Fernando Alonso ‘ghosted’ Otmar Szafnauer before announcing Aston’s move

Ahead of the Aston Martin announcement, Fernando Alonso was expected to sign a 1-year extension with Alpine. This would take his contract until the end of the 2023 season with the French Team.

Alonso was keen on staying for 2 or more years. But the team weren’t ready to agree to his demands citing his age. And with young talent like Oscar Piastri in their reserves, Alpine was in no mood to comply.

Alonso would negotiate a deal with Aston without Alpine’s knowledge. And when the news broke, it came as a shock rather than a surprise to everyone at Alpine, especially Otmar.

Otmar tried to reach out to the driver the following day but the Spaniard’s phone was unreachable due to poor coverage. Szafnauer said that Alonso is “on a boat, I believe, in the Greek Isles somewhere.”

And just hours after the statement was made, Fernando posted a video of him walking around his karting track in Oviedo, Spain. He was in his hometown, ignoring Szafnauer’s calls.

Also, Read: Fernando Alonso’s manager allegedly lied to Lawrence Stroll to get him $11 Million a year deal

Alonso told everyone but Otmar about the move

Otmar Szafnauer was stunned when Fernando Alonso agreed to move to Aston Martin. Especially after the driver promised the team that he would be signing a new contract soon.

Otmar said, “We were in discussions with Fernando for quite some time and were very close to finalising the agreement.” The Spaniard was working with Alpine on a new contract when the news broke out.

Szafnauer also said that the press release was the first time he got to know about the deal. He was aware of rumours surrounding Aston Martin’s interest in the 2-time World Champion. But he wasn’t given any update regarding the move from the driver.

Szafnauer adds, “I was confident that even with the rumours, there is nothing wrong with exploring and that we were very close[to signing a new contract]. So yes, the first confirmation I had was the press release, I did ask the question, but I was told ‘no, no I haven’t signed anything.'”

Turns out Alonso deliberately avoided telling Otmar about the move. The Spaniard claims to have informed Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi and Renault CEO Luca de Meo and even his engineers and mechanics.

Alonso’s messy divorce from Alpine has finally concluded and the 41-year-old can’t wait to race in green. But there’s only hope that his swansong spell wouldn’t be a mistake he realises too late.

Also Read: “Everyone except Otmar Szafnauer” – $20 Million-a-year Fernando Alonso told everyone but Alpine Team Principal about his move to Aston Martin