Mincing words and diplomacy haven’t been Fernando Alonso‘s strong suit. During the launch of the 2023 challenger of his new team, Aston Martin, he didn’t shy away from addressing the mediocrity of his previous teams. While a few brushed the statement away, thinking this is trademark Alonso who is just unhappy with his ex-employers, someone from his old motoring home took it personally.

Fernando Alonso jumped into outgoing Sebastian Vettel’s Aston Martin seat, kick-starting the 2022 silly season. While that is old news, the new one is Fernando Alonso calling out the complacency of his erstwhile teams specifically stating they were happy to finish fourth. The team that finished fourth last year was in fact his old employer, Alpine. And the boss of the Renault-owned outfit, Otmar Szafnauer has now hit back at the Spaniard, declaring a war.

During the Alpine’s 2023 challenger launch, as quoted by Crash.net, Szafnauer said, “I think when we did finish fourth, if you look back, he was as happy as everybody else who was part of the team.”

He further added, “When the year before you’re fifth and your ambition is to move up to fourth, it’s not easy to do. We had to beat McLaren. I’ve been to Woking and you walk by and they have a massive trophy cabinet, so they’re not easy to beat.”

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While Alpine and Alonso both were reportedly happy being fourth in the championship standings last year, the latter did move to greener pastures quite literally, opting for the shiny green team. But what made him make this unusual choice?

What motivated Fernando Alonso to make the unusual choice?

While the world wondered why would a veteran like Alonso move from a team that finished fourth in the championship standings to a team that was found on the unwanted end of that list, he had something else in mind. According to him, the brand name and 3 key factors motivated him.

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In an exclusive interview with the AMF1 team, he said, “Aston Martin F1 is taking the necessary steps to win in the near future. The team is determined to become a championship contender and will do whatever it takes to get there. This ambition is appealing to any racing driver. You see all the investment, the new factory, the talent joining the team, and you want to be part of it.”

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Will the double champion’s gamble pay off? Can he claim his third-world title with the Silverstone-based outfit?