Fernando Alonso has returned to Formula 1 with the aim of being champion again and has a plan for it. The Asturian was aware that he would not have options to fight for the World Championship in 2021, yet he still wanted to return this season to help Alpine, from within, build his next car. And it is that in 2022 the change of regulation that has motivated his return will come into force.
“ By 2022 dreaming is free, of course you work with that illusion . The rule change can cause the cards to be mixed in the sport, why not us? We would not be here now if we think that next year we cannot be at the top ”, admitted Fernando Alonso recently.
The Spaniard also issued a warning to his team: “ The car that is born well, leads the decade of that regulation. If you are in those cars, you win four or five titles ”. While other pilots who like him aspire to be champions from 2022 have doubts about it, because they do not know where their rivals will be, Fernando Alonso does not doubt Alpine . “I think the team is renewed, motivated and has the potential to be a champion team in the future. I’m sure of that. I don’t know if it will take two, five or seven years , but we are in a good project and I am enjoying it ”, he affirmed.
Along the same lines, after stroking the podium at the Russian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso stated: “I am very proud of the progress. We are building a very strong team and looking to next year , hopefully the package will be competitive in the factory, but the competition team is ready to fight ”.
“You have to believe in the plan”
The good work of the two-time champion added to the victory that Esteban Ocon achieved at the Hungaroring invites Alpine to look optimistically at 2022. Asked about it in the run-up to the Turkish Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso, with an obvious smile: he pointed out: “You have to believe in the plan ”.
Fernando Alonso’s statement that the whole planet was waiting for
“You have to believe in THE PLAN” 💙
Now you can start popping the RT button @alo_oficial @ AlpineF1Team # TurkeyDAZNF1 🇹🇷 pic.twitter.com/uxFcrOiBqR
– DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) October 9, 2021
And precisely to believe in the plan is what the Oviedo has invited his followers. Fernando Alonso is using his social networks to give his followers clues about this plan, which consists of several phases.
Return and adaptation to Formula 1
The first of them was to return to Formula 1 and that is something that the Asturian has done hand in hand with Alpine . Fernando Alonso already turned Renault into a winning team in his day and with that objective he has returned. “I will prepare a good project for 2022, better to do it from within than playing Play, ” he said after confirming his signing.
Need to build a winning car
Fernando Alonso believes in the plan and this plan happens because Alpine makes a competitive car for both him and Esteban Ocon . Optimistic about this is Laurent Rossi, CEO of the French Formula 1 team, who has promised them the best car in history in 2022: ” We will make sure to build the best car in history for the next regulatory era .” “I’m sure this new mayonnaise will taste good next year. We are French, so we know a thing or two about mayonnaise, ”he added humorously.
But it is of no use to Fernando Alonso that Alpine makes a good car available to him if he does not adapt to Formula 1 after two years of absence. And that is what the Spaniard has done in 2021. Fernando Alonso has had a harder time getting ready than he expected and he has had to realign his style. Precisely that could be an advantage for him for next season, when the rest of the drivers have to adapt their driving to the new cars.
” I’m not 100, I’d say I’m 95 percent, ” he declared in a recent interview. “ Part of 95% is the time I was away from sport. I have two years to go in which the tires have evolved . Second, there is a lack of confidence in the leadership. After Baku it is better, but it is not something I was part of the development project from the beginning. I had to adapt a bit . I hope it will be better next year. Cars will also be very different to drive. Maybe the whole grid needs to realign its riding style. Hopefully I can take advantage of it ”, added Fernando Alonso .
Lando Norris, who days ago tested the 2022 car in the simulator, has already warned about it: “ It’s a very different car when it comes to driving . In a way it is not as pleasant as this season. I think it will be the same for all teams ”.
Alonso accumulates luck for 2022
Fernando Alonso has always had talent, when he was 40 years old and when he debuted in Formula 1 in 2001. What has not always accompanied Fernando Alonso , and he trusts that it is part of the plan, is luck. The Spaniard started fifth in Istanbul, his best starting position since the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix. However, after being rammed by Pierre Gasly in the first corner, Fernando Alonso was relegated to the rear of the grid. “It is what it is, surely we will be accumulating a lot of luck for next year and we have to see it that way. Sooner or later, everything evens out . We are not having much luck, so we will have it sooner or later ”, declared the two-time champion after the race.
