Fernando Alonso believes that age cannot be the deciding factor in when he calls it quits on his Formula 1 career.
Alonso turned 45 in July and yet is leading Aston Martin’s charge in F1’s latest era.
The two-time World Champion is yet to commit to what would be his 24th full-time season in the sport next year.
That said, the Spaniard is defying the odds that have stacked up against him. At Zandvoort, Alonso pulled the revamped AMR26 to ninth at the chequered flag from 18th on the grid.
And in doing so, he became the first driver since Graham Hill (1974) to score F1 World Championship points after hitting the age of 45.
But with a decision on his future still to be made, Alonso squarely refuted age being a factor in making that call.
“Age is not a problem. It’s just the motivation, the fun, what is remaining to be achieved,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“There are drivers that have never been on the podium, drivers that have never won a race, drivers that dream to become champion one day.
“I obviously have those goals as well and that appetite, but I have also bigger ambitions as well, and I took the sabbatical years [between 2019-2020] to be a more complete driver and to learn different things as well, not only specific to Formula 1.”
Fernando Alonso is a “different animal” compared to his F1 rivals
Since his return to the sport in 2021, Alonso’s achievements have been evaluated relative to his age.
Alongside the Aston Martin driver, Lewis Hamilton is the only other driver in his 40s – and enjoying quite a resurgent run with the SF-26 after a squalid four years with the ground-effects cars.
When asked whether the current generation of cars was easier to drive and thus prolonging the careers of the elder statesmen, Alonso quickly cited the 2023 Qatar GP, when Alonso was 42, to silence these suggestions.
The race saw Esteban Ocon vomiting in his helmet, Lance Stroll losing consciousness, and Logan Sargeant being forced to retire because of the punishing climate.
“You have a certain age that you are at your peak, and then you have to perform, but this is not football, this is not athletics, this is not the NBA,” Alonso explained.
“When we raced in Qatar in 2023, [when Alonso was 42], everyone was semi-dead in the parc ferme in front of me, and I was fine. I was doing the interviews in the TV pen, so this is a different animal.
“There is someone who is using 100% of their brain capacity and physical abilities to drive the car, and maybe Max Verstappen is using 10% because he’s on another level, so it depends.”
Alonso heads into the Italian GP weekend with an AMR26 that has finally delivered, at least on the chassis side of things.
But the works Honda PU is still an area of concern for the Silverstone-based team.
READ MORE – Fernando Alonso issues ‘very long time’ Aston Martin verdict in F1 future update
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