Fernando Alonso's two-year contract extension with Aston Martin will take him past his 45th birthday in the 2026 season.
It will extend his F1 career into a 23rd season by the end of that deal, he should be nudging over 450 grands prix entered.
He is set to become the first driver to reach 400 starts in Qatar later this year, and assuming the 2026 calendar also features 24 races as the '25 one will, the season finale of '26 will be the 1,173rd World Championship event.
Providing Alonso is not injured and is entered into all these races, that brings his total to 452 entries and 449 starts.
That total of 452 entries would mean Alonso would have entered 38.53% of all F1 world championship races.
His longevity in carrying on beyond his 45th birthday makes him a rarity, and in doing so, he will become the first F1 driver since fellow two-time world champion Graham Hill at the 1975 Brazilian Grand Prix to race as a 45-year-old.
But as the table below shows, Alonso will need to race on for at least another 10 years to smash the record for 'oldest F1 driver of all-time' - currently held by Monegasque Louis Chiron with his sixth place in his home Monaco Grand Prix of 1955.
Chiron was 55 years, nine months and 19 days old, meaning if Alonso wants to break that record, he will need to race in any grand prix after Tuesday, 19th May 2037.
Based on the current calendar, that should be on Sunday, 24th May - the Monaco Grand Prix...
10 oldest F1 drivers of all-time - with bonus drivers
| Rank | Driver | Race | Age |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Louis Chiron | Monaco 1955 | 55 years, 9 months, 19 days |
| 2. | Philippe Etancelin | France 1952 | 55 years, 6 months, 8 days |
| 3. | Arthur Legat | Belgium 1953 | 54 years, 7 months, 20 days |
| 4. | Luigi Fagioli | France 1951 | 53 years, 0 months, 22 days |
| 5. | Adolf Brudes | Germany 1952 | 52 years, 9 months, 19 days |
| 6. | Hans Stuck | Italy 1953 | 52 years, 8 months, 17 days |
| 7. | Bill Aston | Germany 1952 | 52 years, 4 months, 5 days |
| 8. | Clemente Biondetti | Italy 1950 | 52 years, 0 months, 16 days |
| 9. | Louis Rosier | Germany 1956 | 50 years, 9 months, 0 days |
| 10. | Rudolf Schoeller | Germany 1952 | 50 years, 3 months, 7 days |
| 16. | Giuseppe Farina | Belgium 1955 | 48 years, 7 months, 6 days |
| 25. | Juan Manuel Fangio | France 1958 | 47 years, 0 months, 12 days |
| 34. | Graham Hill | Brazil 1975 | 45 years, 11 months, 11 days |
| 49. | Jack Brabham | Mexico 1970 | 44 years, 6 months, 23 days |
| 57. | Michael Schumacher | Brazil 2012 | 43 years, 10 months, 22 days |
| 78. | Fernando Alonso | Japan 2024 | 42 years, 8 months, 9 days |
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