Fernando Alonso is set to race for the eight team in his Formula 1 career, when he switches to Aston Martin in 2023. The Spaniard has admitted that while the decision to move was "difficult" he also believes that drivers are never "100% sure" when they make a switch. "It's always very difficult decisions every time you change team or you make a career move," he told media, including RacingNews365 . "You are never 100% sure." Alonso had a difficult spell in 2015 when he made the switch from Ferrari to McLaren, who had signed Honda as their power unit supplier. The move didn't yield the results he or the team expected and at the end of 2018, he left F1 to pursue other motorsport accolades including winning the Le Mans 24 hours race two-times and competing in both the Indy 500 and Dakar Rally.
Leaving Alpine "emotionally" difficult
The Spaniard re-joined Alpine for the third time in 2021, having previously won two championships when they were Renault in 2005 and 2006. The other occasion he returned to the team was in 2008, after a year at McLaren which culminated in him falling out with team management. This led to him going back to Renault in 2009 for two years, then racing with Ferrari for four between 2010 and 2014. With such a history with the Enstone-based team he said the option to leave was "emotionally" difficult, but feels its the right thing to do. He explained: "This was another tough one, especially because leaving Alpine was emotionally quite difficult. "But you know, it was something that I felt and I still feel, and I'm happy.
Alonso on Stroll: "I think he's very talented"
Alonso will partner Lance Stroll in 2023 at Aston Martin, but their paths have previously crossed when the Spaniard was still at Ferrari and Stroll was racing as a Ferrari junior driver. He added: "I think we were talking about Ferrari and I said ‘I'm not sure how long I will be in the team and then also you are 10 years old, so let's let's see if we will meet one day in Ferrari’ "At that time maybe I was not thinking I would not stay in F1 for that long anyways, so I'm happy to share a him. "We know each other for more than 12 years or 13 years and with Lawrence [Stroll] as well. I think he he's very talented. "We see spies [of performance] from time to time, also in Spa he was P4 on Friday, and I talked to him about how that lap came out. Then on Saturday, [he was] maybe not so fast. "But there is there is potential so I'm looking forward."
Most read
