Sebastian Vettel enjoyed his golden age in Formula 1 from 2010 to 2013, years in which he was able to win the title of the highest category of motorsport on up to four consecutive occasions, with Fernando Alonso as his closest rival in the vast majority of these years.
This Thursday, in the run-up to the 2022 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix, the four-time German champion announced his retirement, which will take place at the end of this season, at the age of 35, since his off-track projects, especially related to his family, they have advanced to the right his desire to remain committed to such a demanding category.
However, on the other side of the scale, Fernando Alonso , who will turn 41 this Friday, July 29, continues to be 100% focused on F1 and, despite his age, which makes him the oldest driver on the current grid. , his sensations and his level of driving are at the same level or even above what he showed in those years in which he faced Vettel until the last race of the course.
A decade after these confrontations, in which both had their pluses and minuses, everything has been forgotten. And that was demonstrated this Thursday at the Hungaroring with the words that the Spanish driver dedicated to one of his biggest rivals in the Great Circus.
“What to say? We will miss him after so many years sharing the track and fighting. In his championships, I was also there in a way.”
“He is a great champion and also a great man, with very strong values and a lovely family and probably that decision is also, as I have heard, influenced by the family, so I wish him the best, and hopefully, he will be in the paddock. “, he added.
When asked if Vettel had been his toughest and most complicated rival in Formula 1, the Asturian driver compared him to Lewis Hamilton, although he preferred to leave Michael Schumacher in a special place.
“Lewis and Sebastian, both. Obviously Michael will always remain my choice, because I fought for the championship with him and I grew up watching him in Formula 1, dominating the series. So obviously I learned a lot from Michael. But with Lewis and Seb, I shared a lot.”
As for the reason that the German driver alleged as decisive for making this decision, Alonso acknowledged that he understood that these reasons had pushed him to leave F1: “I understand, I saw them in Austria, they were in the same hotel. They seemed very happy , a very nice family. So I think it’s going to be a lot of fun for him.”
“I stopped in 2018 because I had bigger challenges on my mind like Le Mans, IndyCar or cross-country rallies. And in 2018, or 2019, let’s just say the chances I had of racing here weren’t attractive. There was only one winning team, so it wasn’t a good place to be. I don’t know if this has also influenced Sebastian’s decision, you know, to have a competitive car or not”, the Asturian finished, comparing it with his situation when he took the decision to move away from the top flight for several seasons.
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