Red Bull boss Christian Horner has revealed he had a conversation with Fernando Alonso earlier in the 2024 Formula 1 season regarding a possible move to the team.
Alonso will hit another milestone at this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix as the event at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez marks his 400th weekend appearance.
However, the Spaniard will face an uphill task to celebrate his latest achievement with a positive result amid the woes that Aston Martin endured in Austin a week ago.
Alonso being laboured with an uncompetitive car has been a consistent trend ever since he wrapped up his second successive Drivers’ title with Renault back in 2006.
The current Aston Martin racer has been made to rue ill-timed career decisions, including the choice to turn down Red Bull before and during its dominant 2010s stint.
But while it’s been well documented that the two parties had talks during Alonso’s initial spell in the series, Horner has admitted there were talks even during this term.
“He’s a formidable competitor, and at the end of his McLaren stint, I remember going to Madrid and pushing to get him in the car,” Horner said in Mexico.
“We wanted to do a two-year deal, and he was only prepared to sign for one year, and we were convinced he had a Ferrari contract in his back pocket at that point.
“So we didn’t get to a deal, and had he come to us in 2009, maybe things could have looked slightly differently.
“Even halfway through the 2009 season, he was convinced if he got in our car, he could still win the championship that year.
“So that was at that point, we then had a conversation, I remember meeting with him, with Adrian [Newey], in the back of a hire car at Spa Airport, and I think that was around 2011, ‘11 or ‘12, about again coming across with a Ferrari, maybe even as early as the beginning of this year.
“So it’s incredible the longevity that he’s had, the competitiveness that he has, the talent that he has, the ability he has, two World Championships, he should have won more than that.”
Horner expands on Alonso contact
Horner’s version of events correlates with Alonso’s disclosure that he had spoken to rival teams prior to penning a contract extension with Aston Martin through 2026.
The long-serving Red Bull Team Principal has explained that discussions with Alonso materialised at a time when Sergio Perez wasn’t tied down to deal past this year.
“Well at that time Sergio’s contract hadn’t been extended, so as Fernando is a seasoned operator, he always wants to know all of his options,” Horner explained.
“Between him and his manager or advisor, Flavio [Briatore], they’re always testing the market.
“And it just shows how hungry and competitive he is, and he’s still delivering at 43 years of age.
“He’s still in great shape, and it just shows that age is just a number, so yeah, he’s still a very capable pre-driver, given the tools, I’m sure he’ll be at the front.”
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