At 43, Fernando Alonso looks more motivated than ever to chase glory in F1. Following pre-season testing in Bahrain, the Spaniard — despite an underwhelming overall performance from Aston Martin — seemed quite happy and even admitted to being excited about what’s to come.
Does this mean he knows something we don’t? Perhaps. But what’s certain — both to us and to Alonso — is that he doesn’t have much time left in F1. He last won a race in Spain, back on 2013, and is desperate to return to the top step of the podium.
Alonso doesn’t have the reputation of being a very patient driver either. His career choices haven’t always been perfect, as evidenced by his ill-timed move to McLaren. But one thing has remained constant — his frustration with being held back by an uncompetitive car.
However, Alonso finds himself at an unprecedented stage of his career. Perhaps that’s why he seems willing to sacrifice short-term gains for the hope of long-term success.
Ian Parkes of RacingNews365 spoke to him in Bahrain, and according to the journalist, Alonso “sees the bigger picture on this occasion with regard to what the team is doing.”
Alonso joined Aston Martin in 2023 not just to see out his career and ride off into the sunset, but to be competitive again. And he has shown that he still has what it takes. In his first year, with a fairly decent car, he finished on the podium eight times, which pointed toward better things to come.
Unfortunately, the team suffered a dip in form the following year, but on the positive side, they continued working behind the scenes to strengthen their workforce. They brought in key figures like Adrian Newey to help them become a front-runner, and Alonso predicts 2026 to be the year he can start winning again.
Joining forces at last.
Adrian Newey Fernando Alonso. pic.twitter.com/Is5EfaWpSp
— Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) September 10, 2024
“I think 2026 is in our heads for everyone at Aston, and the biggest hope with Adrián coming, and Enrico, and some of the names,” Alonso said after the qualifying session in Singapore last season. “So this is going to be great, and the future looks bright.”
The question is whether Alonso can remain patient until then.
Parkes explains how will Newey help Alonso
With the sport’s most successful aerodynamicist, Newey, set to join Aston Martin, expectations are sky-high. The British engineer has a proven knack for mastering new regulations, as he demonstrated with Red Bull during the recent ground-effect era, helping the team secure two Constructors’ titles.
Parkes is confident that Newey will have a similar impact at Aston Martin. The F1 expert stated that the 66-year-old is “so laser-focused” that he can quickly understand a car’s requirements and make it better.
That said, Parkes does not believe Aston Martin can afford to sacrifice their 2025 season due to the financial implications. With the difference in prize money between finishing sixth and last in the Constructors’ standings amounting to a staggering $25 million, he argues that no team — regardless of its financial strength — can afford to focus solely on 2026.
Moreover, since there are no guarantees that Aston Martin will be among the front-runners in 2026, they will undoubtedly aim to perform as well as possible this season.
However, with a driver like Alonso, whose sole focus is winning, he may not mind if the team shifts its attention entirely to the 2026 car.
