Briatore: Alonso, a “Rottweiler” who would be in the fight for the title
According to Flavio Briatore, a long-time associate, Fernando Alonso is “a Rottweiler” who would be competing for the championship if he were driving for McLaren or Red Bull this year.
Alonso and Briatore, who now leads the F1 Alpine team, have a long relationship that dates back to before the Spaniard entered Formula 1.
Alonso, who will turn 45 next year, will race until 2026 with Aston Martin.
The British team, with significant investment, added the legendary designer Adrian Newey this year as part of their bid to win titles under the new set of rules that will come into effect next season.
When asked if he believes Alonso can be a winner again in F1 with Aston Martin, Briatore replied: “Of course, I hope so. I hope so.”
Flavio Briatore
Briatore continued saying: “Aston has the best genius. Let’s see how the genius does. I’m very curious.”
“But if Aston has a competitive car, we’ll see. Always [when] the car is competitive, Fernando is there. He’s always there. If Fernando were in the McLaren or Red Bull [this season], I promise you he would still be in the race.”
Alonso has two F1 world championships to his name, which he won in 2005 and 2006 under Briatore’s direction at Renault.
He lost titles in the last race of the season in 2007 (with McLaren) and in 2010 and 2012 (with Ferrari), but hasn’t won again despite being widely considered the most complete driver of the modern era.
Alonso’s last victory in an F1 race was in 2013.
Briatore praised Alonso’s stint with Aston Martin and suggested that this highlights why Alonso can return to his competitive form if the car is in the right place next year.
“Sometimes, people publish the news that Fernando was very difficult to handle. And this is nonsense, really,” he said.
“A lot of garbage. I don’t know where it comes from. It completely bothered me [every time I heard that] because Fernando is always a teammate.”
“The guy keeps the team together, makes everyone work together. And the demonstration is also now at Aston Martin, you know. The car is not competitive.”
“But he’s there all the time. He’s like a Rottweiler. You know, you go to a place and the Rottweiler bites you all the time.”
Alonso’s future beyond 2026 is uncertain. The two-time world champion has a contract until the end of next season and has said he would be inclined to leave the sport if he has a more complete season driving a competitive season, but it is more likely that he will stay if Aston Martin is not up to par.
Reports earlier this year suggested that Aston Martin boss Lawrence Stroll, father of Alonso’s teammate Lance Stroll, has long-term aspirations to bring four-time world champion Max Verstappen to the team in the future.
