Fernando Alonso issues 'cannot survive' claim as Barcelona secures major coup

Fernando Alonso believes Spanish motorsport "cannot survive" without top-level racing in Barcelona, after a deal was announced with IndyCar.

For the first time, IndyCar, in its current guise, is to race in Europe from 2027 with a deal agreed after the success of five-time series champion Alex Palou. 

The news comes after the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya formally enters a bi-annual rotation on the F1 calendar, with the venue not on the 2027 calendar - the first time it has not been since it hosted its first race in 1991. 

It will return on rotation with the Belgian Grand Prix in 2029, with Spa taking the even-numbered years until the end of the arrangement after the 2032 season. 

Reflecting on the news, Alonso felt that Barcelona, which lost the formal Spanish Grand Prix to the new Madring street circuit in the Spanish capital, was a crucial part in inspiring the next generation of Spanish racers.

"I think it's going to be good, and it is an historic event for our country, and Barcelona does have the benefit of having a permanent circuit," Alonso told media, including RacingNews365.

"You know that you have the opportunity to test any day of the year, but also to host races here and there. They did the WEC, and now Indy, and they do MotoGP, so that's why, when we compare street circuits to the normal conventional circuits, that's the biggest advantage.

"Barcelona is crucial for motorsport in Spain. We cannot survive without Barcelona for the younger categories, for the people from go-karts that they go testing the F4 for the first time, and FRECA, Formula 3 and even Moto3.

"You have to have a circuit that you can go there, and with IndyCar, this is another example of how good and how lucky we are."

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Future IndyCar expansion

Despite the news, Alonso did not believe that wider expansion into the markets outside the United States was something IndyCar would do bar one or two events.

"IndyCar is very specific to the US market, and one of the things that is more penalising in F1 for the drivers and for the teams, is that the cost goes very high when you travel around the world," he said.

"So it has some benefits and some downside. I think they need to keep it somehow in the US, and have one or two one-off races, but I don't think that they will keep going elsewhere."