Fernando Alonso Set to Retire from Formula One at the End of the Season

[GTPNewsWire]

This is the discussion thread for a recent post on GTPlanet:

Fernando Alonso Set to Retire from Formula One at the End of the Season

This article was published by Michael Leary (@Terronium-12) on August 14th, 2018 in the Formula One category.

 

[shoemaker]

well thats it, Massa, Button and now Alonso. The changing of the guard, controversial and gutsy driver who is respected by all. He has outgrown the sport and with nowhere to go its the correct decision. Indycar is going to gain alot more fans i reckon. Il miss him. So will everyone in F1. The mark of a true great.

 

[TheElbows]

Really sorry to see him go out on such a low (several miserable seasons). Hope he enjoys Prototypes and finds a new passionate series to enjoy and win in.

 

[vrossi]

Can you imagine if he stayed at Ferrari?

 

[CarreraGT]

Absolute legend of the sport. Here's to hoping he dominates in Indy, wins the triple crown and returns to F1 to capture his third title

 

[TonyJZX]

Yeah he deserved more success. Its sad for him to linger for years in uncompetitive cars.

All our heroes are leaving and this new mob isnt the same, except for Daniel.

How's it feel now that Vettel is now one of the 'old men' of the sport.

 

[05XR8]

Cool. Frees him up to race in the Bathurst 1000.

 

[Betty blue]

A legend of a driver, but I believe he lacked supporting his teams and developing the cars. And I don't believe Ferrari will be in its current state had he still been there. Sad to see him go, and very annoyed of Redbull not to hire him. But I believe 2 strong drivers will not work at all. The Merc /Ferrari drivers strategy is the optimum in my opinion.

 

[Spacegoat]

Cool. Frees him up to race in the Bathurst 1000.

The Indycar calendar doesn't clash with Bathurst, does it?

Alonso in WAU wildcard (or any supercar team for that matter) would be a dream.

 

[ShrekIsLove]

The most overrated and overhyped driver of F1 today, personally I won't miss him. He's undoubtedly a great pilot but his personality ruined everything around him. Remember the old McLaren year with Hamilton? Or the Ferrari seasons without winning a championship and then blaming the team all the time? Same as with Honda? Again, a great driver, but a selfish conceited one as a person.

 

[Scuderia Paul]

I cannot say I am surprised by this news but it is still a huge pity to know you are losing one of the all-time great drivers. He has endured several dreadful seasons and it is understandable that he is fed up. It is partly his own doing in that he did a bit of team hopping when you surely know that Ferrari for example will come good again. Then again hindsight is a wonderful thing.

He is one of very few characters in F1 and leaves Ricciardo and Raikkonen to carry that baton.
It is a big loss for fans but I am just glad that I was able to see him at his very best.

 

[TonyJZX]

I think on the one hand the numbers speak for themselves. 2 DC and 30 plus wins plus numerous podiums.

However I do get it, from 2007 to the current day he's been warming a seat.

I'm not a huge fan of the guy, I wasnt a Renault fan and his heyday wasnt big on my radar.. I wish there was more to his F1 career post Renault.

 

[05XR8]

The Indycar calendar doesn't clash with Bathurst, does it?

Alonso in WAU wildcard (or any supercar team for that matter) would be a dream.

Alonso and another driver in their own car for all three Enduro events, would be epic.

 

[baldgye]

All our heroes are leaving and this new mob isnt the same, except for Daniel.

Vestappen, Leclerc, Noris, Russle... F1's future is very bright indeed.

 

[Liquid]

I'll say it again:

Even with two world championships, even with his mercurial personality in wanting a team built around him, even with the intra-team problems he has been through, I still say that Fernando Alonso has suffered the greatest misuse of talent in the history of Formula one.

/I will not be reading the replies to this post.

 

[BigJimmy]

I'll say it again:

Even with two world championships, even with his mercurial personality in wanting a team built around him, even with the intra-team problems he has been through, I still say that Fernando Alonso has suffered the greatest misuse of talent in the history of Formula one.

/I will not be reading the replies to this post.

Which Pokemon is that?

On Topic... I think we will still see lots of Alonso and it will be in far more entertaining forms of Motorsport. I think this is not such a bad thing.

 

[Interstellar9]

Vestappen, Leclerc, Noris, Russle... F1's future is very bright indeed.

Except from Verstappen the other guys are "boring". They lack in personality. Guys like Verstappen, Ricciardo, Schumacher, Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso, Senna, they all have something in common: They are ruthless on track and show personality, passion and enthusiasm. When thinking about all these young guys, I see just some PR brainwashed "Yes-sayers". Sure, they are fast (Leclerc, Noris, Russle) but they are not exciting.

What I don't mean that they are talentless or bad people. I just find them not really exciting.

So, yeah. I was never a fan of Alonso but he was/is very fast and he has personality, a soul if you want. And his team radios are legendary. I'll miss him.

 

[cal1608h]

Gutted but not surprised. He is my favourite modern F1 driver alongside Mika Hakkinen. Just hope he goes to compete in a full WEC Super Season or the IndyCar series.

 

[baldgye]

Except from Verstappen the other guys are "boring". They lack in personality. Guys like Verstappen, Verstappen, Schumacher, Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso, Senna, they all have something in common: They are ruthless on track and show personality. When thinking about all these young guys, I see just some PR brainwashed "Yes-sayers". Sure, they are fast (Leclerc, Noris, Russle) but they are not exciting.

What I don't mean that they are talentless or bad people. I just find them not really exciting.

So, yeah. I was never a fan of Alonso but he was/is very fast and he has personality, a soul if you want. And his team radios are legendary. I'll miss him.

What?
They are all Jr drivers, that means you don't get to have a 'personality' what ever that means. Also they are pretty ruthless on track, but they are still learning. Hell, only two of the names I listed are even in F1...

That said, Lando seems like a pretty fun dude

 

[Dotini]

An in-depth look at Fernando's Indy car prospects. Honda: not on good terms. Roger Penske (Chevrolet): "Not interested at this time".
https://racer.com/2018/08/14/insight-what-are-alonsos-indycar-options/

 

[baldgye]

An in-depth look at Fernando's Indy car prospects. Honda: not on good terms. Roger Penske (Chevrolet): "Not interested at this time".
https://racer.com/2018/08/14/insight-what-are-alonsos-indycar-options/

But there could be one major hang-up. Honda Japan is reportedly not pleased with the criticism of its F1 engine that McLaren dished out in 2016 and 2017, and was not keen to offer any financial support or engines.

Andretti is one of Honda’s big guns – they’ve four won of the last six Indy 500s – they’re under contract for at least one more year, and its unlikely Honda would let him out of his deal.

Alonso being one of the most vocal about the quality of the Honda engine. This is another good example of why Alonso is his own worst enemy and why after McLaren in 2007, never really got into a championship winning car again.

 

[Dotini]

Alonso being one of the most vocal about the quality of the Honda engine. This is another good example of why Alonso is his own worst enemy and why after McLaren in 2007, never really got into a championship winning car again.

Of all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these: "It might have been."

Maybe we need a list of all-time F1 sob stories. I nominate Stirling Moss.

 

[TRGTspecialist]

Guys like Verstappen, Ricciardo, Schumacher, Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso, Senna, they all have something in common: They are ruthless on track and show personality, passion and enthusiasm.

Most of those drivers have had - and took - many years to craft their image, though. What personality/passion/enthusiasm did Ricciardo show in 2011? Alonso in 2001? Schumacher in 1991?

 

[baldgye]

Of all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these: "It might have been."

Maybe we need a list of all-time F1 sob stories. I nominate Stirling Moss.

To be fair, I think Ferrari might be thinking the same. If this season continues on the path it has then that'll have been two years when Ferrari have produced (at times) the best car on the grid and not won the title. With Alonso, could it have been different?

 

[Dotini]

To be fair, I think Ferrari might be thinking the same. If this season continues on the path it has then that'll have been two years when Ferrari have produced (at times) the best car on the grid and not won the title. With Alonso, could it have been different?

Well, IMHO, Vettel is not even a pimple on Fernando's ass. Seb needs a super-diffuser to stay on track.

 

[AudiMan2011]

I think the writing was on the wall for Alonso to exit F1 after his Indy 500 run last year.

Once he wraps up his duties in WEC this year, I think it's a safe bet Alonso will end up in a full time seat in Indycar.

 

[Dan_]

I wish he had another crack at beating HAM, superb talent that will be missed.

I just hope people remember him for his amazing talent and downplay the "not a very good teammate" rhetoric, none of the modern f1 great champs were "good" guys when they had fast teammates. Prost, Senna, Piquet and Schumacher were relentless in asserting their political dominance within their teams. Hamilton, Vettel and Alonso are just the same.

 

[EDK]

An in-depth look at Fernando's Indy car prospects. Honda: not on good terms. Roger Penske (Chevrolet): "Not interested at this time".
https://racer.com/2018/08/14/insight-what-are-alonsos-indycar-options/

While I appreciate that someone took the time to look at the situation from many angles, I would say that's far from conclusive. At this point, nearly everything is speculation with the possible exception of Penske, since he came right out and said he was not interested. However, "at this time" allows him an out.

I believe if Fernando wants to race in IndyCar, he will race in IndyCar. For the simple reason that he has leverage.

This is a series that certainly has emerged from the ashes of the dark days of the split and the ultimate failure of ChampCar. But it's far from what it was going in, and there's tremendous potential to market to a broader, global audience. Not to mention that NASCAR is vulnerable now, for a variety of reasons, mainly self inflicted. There are eyeballs to be gained, and this is a driver who would make a significant and immediate impact.

They have the new TV contract with NBC next year, with 8 races to be broadcast on their free to air network (up from 5). They are still on the lookout for a replacement title sponsor, as far as we know. If you're the people in charge of those decisions and marketing the series, you will want Alonso.

That same article you linked to mentioned Zack Brown talking to Chevrolet in Detroit. There's nothing to prevent McLaren from running a car with a Chevrolet engine. And the series itself may very well work to influence Honda based on the benefit his arrival would provide.

With his other sportscar commitments, it may not happen this year. But I would certainly not rule it out.

 

[kilesa4568]

How can people not like the guy? A great personality and an exceptional F1 talent. Kudos for sticking with a troubled team for so long too. I'll miss his F1 radio chatter though.

Wherever he goes next doesn't matter. He'll no doubt keep his legion of fans. Me included.

 

[baldgye]

While I appreciate that someone took the time to look at the situation from many angles, I would say that's far from conclusive. At this point, nearly everything is speculation with the possible exception of Penske, since he came right out and said he was not interested. However, "at this time" allows him an out.

I believe if Fernando wants to race in IndyCar, he will race in IndyCar. For the simple reason that he has leverage.

This is a series that certainly has emerged from the ashes of the dark days of the split and the ultimate failure of ChampCar. But it's far from what it was going in, and there's tremendous potential to market to a broader, global audience. Not to mention that NASCAR is vulnerable now, for a variety of reasons, mainly self inflicted. There are eyeballs to be gained, and this is a driver who would make a significant and immediate impact.

They have the new TV contract with NBC next year, with 8 races to be broadcast on their free to air network (up from 5). They are still on the lookout for a replacement title sponsor, as far as we know. If you're the people in charge of those decisions and marketing the series, you will want Alonso.

That same article you linked to mentioned Zack Brown talking to Chevrolet in Detroit. There's nothing to prevent McLaren from running a car with a Chevrolet engine. And the series itself may very well work to influence Honda based on the benefit his arrival would provide.

With his other sportscar commitments, it may not happen this year. But I would certainly not rule it out.

Given how utterly ****ed Mclaren's F1 team is, is it really realistic to assume that if Alonso went to Indy, it would be with a Mclaren team?