Fernando Alonso ‘s Plan with Alpine involves raising a world champion title again, as happened in 2005 and 2006 at the hands of Renault. A year later, in 2007, he signed for McLaren. The British team made use of Pedro de la Rosa to sign the Asturian driver back in 2005, just before he was proclaimed world champion for the first time and made history by becoming the first Spaniard to do so.
Alonso beat Kimi Raikkonen and Michael Schumacher in 2005, but before he did, Ron Dennis already wanted to sign him. The McLaren boss was quicker than anyone to capture the great talent of the moment, the first to beat the Kaiser after his five consecutive titles (2000 to 2004). The former driver was key for Alonso to end up accepting the offer from the British team.
De la Rosa himself reveals how the negotiation unfolded and his involvement in it despite the fact that at that time he and Alonso did not have such a close relationship as they do now. Everything changed since the then McLaren test driver contacted his compatriot to inform him of the team’s offer to sign him in 2007, since in 2006 he had a valid contract.
“I have to confess that before the race in Brazil began, we made an offer to Fernando to sign him for 2007. Ron Dennis called me and said ‘Pedro, I want you to make an offer to Fernando to sign him in 2007, I know that next year (for 2006) he has a valid contract’. And I told him ‘okay, I’ll do it on Monday’. And he answered ‘no, Pedro, you didn’t understand me. It has to be before he is crowned world champion, because I want him to know that the interest is before he is champion, because when he is, everyone will love him. But I want it first,'” De la Rosa commented in the DAZN documentary “2005, the year that changed our lives.”
With the creation of this report, which is already available on the platform, it is intended to remember Fernando Alonso ‘s first title in F1. De la Rosa says that he was amazed when he received the request from the McLaren boss because he did not have the Asturian’s phone: «I told Ron Dennis I don’t have his phone. I had no relationship with Fernando, we were rivals. But it was as a result of this that our relationship began to be much closer. As a reserve driver, I made an offer to Fernando to join McLaren when I wanted to be the McLaren driver. And at that time, I think it was also very important for Fernando’s future to have an offer to join McLaren.”
