When we think about Formula 1, a long career spanning decades is not what usually comes to mind. After all, when the competition is tougher than ever, only the fittest happens to survive and keep their seats, let alone stay at the top of their game. Formula 1 continuously expanding its races now becomes more taxing on the personal lives of our favorite racers. Unfortunately, F1 drivers face a similar decline in performance as other high-intensity athletes, which means this age of peak performance begins to drop off much earlier, with most racers retiring from the top level in their thirties. However, Fernando Alonso has always advocated against this stereotype.

He has showcased just how competitive an F1 driver can remain at the age of 40 if they still have that fire burning within. After all, Fernando Alonso has had his best season in Formula 1 in 2023 since his time with Ferrari reached a high in 2012. Amid all the chaos, Alonso reveals his plans for the future stating that the ‘moment has not yet come‘.

Fernando Alonso’s ‘Mission Impossible’ glory outshined tomorrow’s champions, but what does the future hold?

To start things off, let’s take a look at Fernando Alonso’s 2023 season and his journey so far in his return to the pinnacle of motorsport. While Alonso racked up a few good stints in the Alpine and managed solid top-ten finishes, his best would come with Lawrence Stroll’s brainchild despite expectations being mediocre. You see, Aston Martin was heading into the 2023 season as the seventh-best team, which meant regular podiums should have been out of the question.

While Alonso went through the key moments of his 2023 season, the Spaniard was quoted by Auto Motorsport, “If I’m honest, then I expected myself in the points ranks at 80 percent of the races, at 50 to 60 percent in Q3 and with luck maybe once on the podium. With two RedBull, two Mercedes, and two Ferrari, a place in the top 3 seemed to me like a Mission Impossible.”

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Fast forward to the 9th race, and Alonso had already managed to visit the podium on six occasions with the Aston Martin. It seemed like Stroll’s outfit had caught the giants napping. Not only was the AMR23 a formidable force for Ferrari and Mercedes to keep up with for much of the first half of the season, but Alonso was also able to take the fight to Max Verstappen on multiple occasions.

But that would all change once Aston Martin fell victim to the development race and failed to build on their newfound momentum in the first few races. Despite a tumultuous second half of the season, Alonso would finish fourth in the standings, ahead of fan favorites Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, and George Russell. Even though Alonso missed out on the major title accolades of the 2023 season, his stint with Aston Martin only proves how lethal the Spaniard can be with the right car beneath his feet.

However, fans could have missed out on seeing Alonso achieve a Brazilian GP podium at the age of 42 years and 99 days old. Sharing his thoughts on the time his career could have come to a premature end, Alonso stated, “When I signed with McLaren for three years in 2007, I thought: This was my last contract.” But after taking into account his 2023 season with Lawrence Stroll’s long-term project, it’s safe to say the Spaniard shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

He added, “I will look at what 24 races feel like next year. When I feel like I’m no longer performing the performance I expect from me, I’m the first to raise my hand. The moment has not yet come.” Alonso feels the only hurdle that could slow down his pace at 42 is the ever-increasing calendar and the growing demands it brings with it. After all, Alonso has already spent decades traveling with the F1 circus, there will come a time when other matters outgrow the sport’s priority.

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While Alonso clearly displayed his knack for delivering podium results regardless of his age, what exactly led to the AMR23 failing to keep up in the development race?

Alonso tussled with the AMR23 for feedback while admitting the complexity of cars these days

Compared to the time when Niki Lauda could spontaneously tell Ferrari mechanics how to make his challenger gain precious tenths in front of Enzo Ferrari, modern cars are a completely different ballgame. From the plethora of sensors that each have their own set of variables, trying to understand where to extract pace from can be rather challenging.

Alonso shared, “These cars are more difficult to understand because the driver’s feedback is no longer so clear. Sometimes the balance of the car does not fit and you finish third. Then again you feel comfortable in the car and land in 14th place.” The case could not be more true for Mercedes either, as they have struggled throughout the season with their set-ups, even getting disqualified from Austin for the same.

When cars were not as complicated as they are today, problems could mainly be attributed to arising from factors such as the drivetrain, Tyre setup, downforce setup, and overall aerodynamic behavior. However, with ground effects adding an element of variation, Alonso concluded, “It has become much more complicated to filter out individual factors for a particular driving behavior. In the past, it was possible to say much more precisely whether the problem comes from the aerodynamics, the chassis or the tires.”

Fernando Alonso Publicly Exposes Aston Martin’s “Simply Undrivable” Car as He Spills the Beans on Monza Nightmare

After taking into account the stellar season Fernando Alonso has had in 2023, it can only be assumed that 2024 will largely be a year of competence for the 42-year-old. But with F1’s complexities increasing and the calendar expanding, could 2024 be Alonso’s last year in the pinnacle of Motorsport?