The double world champion returned to Formula 1 this year with Alpine after two seasons away from the sport and began his third assignment with the Enstone team, with which he won consecutive world titles in 2005 and 2006.
Alonso signed an initial one-year plus one-year deal and his expected extension with Alpine to 2022 was officially confirmed on Thursday morning before the Belgian Grand Prix this weekend.
The continuation of the partnership came as no surprise as the 2022 F1 rules revolution was always at the forefront of the 40-year-old when he decided to make his comeback.
The extension reaffirms Alonso’s desire to take on the overhaul of Formula 1 regulations, which he hopes will level the playing field and allow the Anglo-French squad to compete for victories and world titles in the years to come.
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“In my head everything was planned for 2022 and the new regulations,” explained Alonso.
“That is probably also the reason why I returned to the sport next year. But then you have the trust of the team and you have to drive good races in this first half of the season.
“So there was no doubt, the contract was one-plus-one, so we had to reach an agreement for 2022 sometime.
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“I’m very happy with the team and the comeback, I’m really looking forward to next year and the team is apparently happy with my work so far, so we took a minute to make the decision.”
Alonso’s confidence in the Alpine project was so great that the Spaniard didn’t speak to any other team, even though he was effectively a free agent for 2022.
Meanwhile, Alpine made the decision to take his option on Alonso a matter of course.
After an initially slow start to his comeback, Alonso has gained a foothold and is currently driving six races into the points, including his best result of the season so far with fourth place at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Alonso’s extraordinary defense against Mercedes-Lewis Hamilton to stop the seven-time world champions late recovery drive in Budapest played a key role in helping team-mate Esteban Ocon to a surprising first win.
“For us it is a perfect line-up of drivers, among the strongest in the field,” said Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi.
“It works in a very complementary way as it offers both raw talent and speed, but still an impeccable team spirit that gave us our first win in Hungary.
“Fernando has impressed us all since he returned to the sport earlier this year. His dedication, teamwork and focus on getting the most out of the team is incredible to be a part of and it is certainly something special to be a witness.
“His performance in Hungary was another example of his racing history and reminded everyone of how skillful he is as a driver.”
Rossi believes Alonso’s experience will be invaluable to Alpine as the team looks to take a step forward in performance and advance further on the grid in 2022.
“I am convinced that we will be able to benefit greatly from Fernando’s knowledge and experience as we move into the final development and optimization phase of the 2022 chassis and powertrain,” he added.
“He is just as hungry for success as we are and does everything in his power to turn it into performance.
“For now, however, we have to concentrate on delivering a strong second half of the year, getting the maximum out of every race and ending up as far ahead as possible in the constructors’ championship.
“This will put us in a golden position for the next year and the considerable opportunities that come with it.”
Alonso won the World Endurance Championship crown and took two victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans of the Indianapolis 500 during his 24-month break from Formula One.
Despite taking the lead on his debut in 2017, Alonso’s chances of a sensational rookie win were ruined by an engine failure in the closing stages. Alonso failed to qualify for the race on his return to the brick factory with McLaren in 2019, before finishing a low 21st place after being hampered by clutch issues throughout the 2020 edition.
While his involvement is currently focused on Formula 1, Alonso insists he won’t give up on his dream of winning the triple crown and doesn’t rule out a fourth attempt in the future.
“I think at the moment my main focus and my full commitment is on the F1 project, especially with the new rules and all the work we have to do over the next year,” he said.
“We’ll see in the future, but right now I’m enjoying this comeback.
“I think I’m now playing at a level I’m happy with from Baku and Silverstone, Hungary, so I hope to show and prove a little more in the second half of the season and next year.
“In the future I will see if there is still a connection to F1 or if I will try different things. Of all the challenges I try outside of Formula 1, Indy sure is still not done so it will always be on the wish list.
“But at the moment I am fully committed to F1.”
The post Why Alonso “needed a minute” to extend his Formula 1 career at Alpine first appeared on monter-une-startup.
