Fernando Alonso and the rest of the Formula 1 grid are already on vacation after the spectacular final chapter in Abu Dhabi . The Asturian is satisfied with his performance in the uncertain season of return to competition and his balance is positive. Once this first stage has been completed, you can now launch the next phase of ‘The Plan’, as Alpine has baptized the ambitious project that they hope will allow them to fight even higher in 2022.
At 40 years old and after the retirement of Kimi Raikkonen , Fernando Alonso is already the oldest driver in Formula 1 . However, his age is not at odds with ambition and he has made it clear that he has no expiration date in sight, even that he plans to continue several more years enrolled in the Great Circus. His good results in 2020 also fuel his competitive fire.
Despite being two years away from the competition, time in which he tried all kinds of adventures such as the Dakar Rally or various endurance races, Fernando Alonso did not return rusty and has signed the final tenth position in the World Championship . With a total of 81 points, he beat his teammate Esteban Ocon (74) and managed to finish third in the Qatar Grand Prix , his first podium since 2014 and number 98 of his career. An unbeatable result to encourage ‘The Plan’.
«It has been a good season. Starting in Baku when we found a consistency that we did not find at the beginning and with the team we have filed some things that I think were not top. Now we have a team that in a weekend that we are not very fast, we continue to score points, “he said as soon as he crossed the finish line in Yas Marina .
😂 @alo_oficial is that the box is directly split 😂
How nice it is to see you so happy 🤩🔝pic.twitter.com / JU3pkN7T9h
– DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) December 13, 2021
There are more than two months left until the engines thunder again in the first preseason tests in Barcelona . The next few weeks are the only period of the year in which the pilots can disconnect from the feverish demands of F1 and Fernando Alonso will take the opportunity to resolve a pending medical procedure.
“We must take a step forward in 2020”
Specifically, he will go through the operating room so that the doctors remove the plates that he has on his face since February, when he was hit by a car while training in Switzerland with his bicycle and suffered damage to his jaw. The recovery was good and the two-time world champion arrived in time for the first race of the year in Bahrain , where he suffered one of only two retirements this season.
During those weeks of convalescence and rest, the Asturian will continue to be very attentive to what happens in the English town of Enstone , where Alpine has its headquarters. “We lack more features that come out of the factory. We also abandoned this car very soon, but next year we have to take a step forward and be more competitive, “he warned.
And is that all the teams in Formula 1 know that this winter opens the greatest opportunity in a long time to improve their status. The revolutionary new regulations will simplify aerodynamics, restore the ‘ground effect’ and increase the size of the tires. These are just some of the many measures aimed at increasing the level of battle on the track and facilitating overtaking. In this promising new F1 , Fernando Alonso wants to show that his enormous talent is still intact.
