[PapaofGags]

Norris could still end up there yet, SVD hasnt shown what a lot of us fans (and no doubt the team) expected 

Hoping for Lando, with only one Brit on the grid.   

[LotusLover]

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/opini...ndo-alonso A small piece by Mark Hughes and seems fair and balanced worth a little read, I don’t think it particularly tells us anything we didn’t already know but good nevertheless

[Foghorn Leghorn]

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/opini...ndo-alonso A small piece by Mark Hughes and seems fair and balanced worth a little read, I don’t think it particularly tells us anything we didn’t already know but good nevertheless

Cheers,but it did tell me something new -

I was unaware it was that close, I knew how close it was year on year, but where Hughes, said it was only eight points in total, which could've seen him a 5 time Champ instead of 2 -Wow - that puts it into a bit of perspective, and consider what he was driving and who he was up against, both as competitive drivers, and teams at those times - Just Wow

No wonder the main thing said about his career is "what could've been" Ce La Vie as they say

[LotusLover]

&Fog well happy days, you learn something new everyday .

---

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/opini...ndo-alonso  A small piece by Mark Hughes and seems fair and balanced worth a little read, I don’t think it particularly tells us anything we didn’t already know but good nevertheless

Cheers,but it did tell me something new -

I was unaware it was that close, I knew how close it was year on year, but where Hughes, said it was only eight points in total, which could've seen him a 5 time Champ instead of 2 -Wow - that puts it into a bit of perspective, and consider what he was driving and who he was up against, both as competitive drivers, and teams at those times - Just Wow

No wonder the main thing said about his career is "what could've been" Ce La Vie as they say

Hey Fog if you read a linked article in same post no one ever beat him in head to heads for races as a teammate, closest was Hamilton but lost 6-5 Räikkönen got pummelled at 14-1 and Massa was trounced also. Trulli beat him in Qualy though overall

[Foghorn Leghorn]

[/quote]

Hey Fog if you read a linked article in same post no one ever beat him in head to heads for races as a teammate, closest was Hamilton but lost 6-5 Räikkönen got pummelled at 14-1 and Massa was trounced also. Trulli beat him in Qualy though overall
[/quote]

Hahaha - hilarious Lotus, I remember many times, some of the Lewis nuts, on Sky forum, bringing up that in 2016, Lewis won more races than Nico, just don't tell Paps - it's a sore point for him, but thanks, a great stat, I Guess using that yardstick, Lewis didn't beat him, hahaha

[forzaferrari]

Alonso: lack of track action prompted me to quit F1

The two-time champion announced earlier this week that he would not be competing in F1 in 2019, but has not ruled out a return in the longer term if the right opportunity came up.
Speaking for the first time on Thursday about the call not to carry on in F1, Alonso said that the predictability of grand prix racing and the lack of excitement proved to be major turn offs for him.
“The action on track is not the one I dreamed of when I joined F1, or when I was in different series, or the action on track that I experienced in other years,” said Alonso ahead of this weekend’s WEC round at Silverstone, where he will be driving for Toyota.“I stopped because the action on track in my opinion I feel is very poor. In fact, what we talk about more in F1, is off track. We talk about polemics. We talk about radio messages. We talk about all these things, and when we talk so many times about those things, it is a bad sign.
“It is because the on-track action was very poor on that weekend, and that is what I feel in F1 now, and I think there are other series that maybe offer better action, more joy and more happiness, so that is what I try to find.”
Although Alonso concedes that a realistic prospect of winning a third world title in 2019 may have been enough to convince him to stay, he is clear that F1 has become something that no longer enthuses him.
“When I was in 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009 and 2011, I was not winning [many] races in those years. But it was difficult to predict [then] what could happen in Spa and Monza.
“Now, we can write down what is going to happen at Spa and Monza. We can put the first 15 positions with maybe one or two mistakes. So how predictable everything became is tough.
“We go to Barcelona and we test the first day of winter testing and you know what you will do until November in Abu Dhabi and it is tough. For me, it is not too much of a problem because after 18 years, as I said before, I achieved more than what I dreamed of.
“But for young drivers or different drivers, it is tough because they just hope that next year the team does an unbelievable step or they receive a call from one or two teams. It became difficult for ambitious drivers.
"[For] a driver with some kind of ambition, it will be tough for the future if things don’t change.”
Door open to F1 return
Alonso only expects to firm up his 2019 plans later this year, with him weighing up options in IndyCar as well as his WEC commitments with Toyota.

But despite not racing in F1 in 2019, he has made clear that a statement suggesting he is open to a return from 2020 is logical because he would be stupid to close off the opportunity now.

“I think the door open is more because I think I am driving at the best level of my career now," he explained. "And why to close doors if anything could happen in the future?

“I am still young. I am not 45 years old. I feel strong and I am doing this year 27 races, so my thinking is to stop. And that is why I stop. But who knows? That is the reason why.”

[PapaofGags]

https://motorsports.nbcsports.com/2018/0...orts-park/

According to a number of media stories Thursday afternoon and evening, two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso will reportedly test an Indy car at Barber Motorsports Park on Wednesday, September 5.
The 2.38-mile permanent road course just outside Birmingham, Alabama, per those stories, will play host to Alonso as he reportedly tests with IndyCar’s Andretti Autosport team and Honda.
Honda Performance Development (HPD) President Art St. Cyr issued a statement late Thursday afternoon about Alonso’s reported upcoming test:
“Fernando Alonso is one of the premier racing drivers of this generation, and we very much enjoyed working with him at the 2017 Indianapolis 500.

“He has shown that he can be very competitive right off the bat, and it would be great for IndyCar if he were to decide to drive here full-time after his F1 career.
Having Alonso as a driver would be an obvious benefit for any team or manufacturer.”

However, St. Cyr’s statement also included a reference to Honda potentially not being able to field a new engine for Alonso in the IndyCar series in 2019.
“Our engine lease agreements are made between HPD and specific teams,” St. Cyr’s statement said. “Several of our current IndyCar Series teams already have agreements in place with HPD for the 2019 season, and we have been operating near maximum capacity all year long to properly provide powerful, reliable engines for all of our teams.
“We have had discussions with several current and potential teams for 2019, and those discussions are ongoing.”

Rumors of Alonso potentially racing for a hybrid operation that would include Andretti Autosport, McLaren and Harding Racing have been picking up speed. But there’s one potential major hurdle: Harding’s Dallara’s are powered by Chevrolet engines.

In addition to being courted by IndyCar, NASCAR has also jumped into the Alonso sweepstakes, saying he’d be welcome to race in the 2019 Daytona 500.

[PapaofGags]

https://www.planetf1.com/news/button-alo...-decision/

Jenson Button has had his say on his former team-mate, and believes that Fernando Alonso has “made the right decision” in leaving Formula 1.
Alonso announced that he would not be racing in F1 next year, posting a video on social media on August 14th.

Button, the 2009 F1 World Champion, believes that it is the right time for the Spaniard to leave, but that he is also correct in leaving the door open for a return.
“I said to him he’s finally made the right decision. He’s woken up and smelled the coffee, as we say,” Button told the media ahead of the 6H of Silverstone WEC race.
“It’s always down to the individual when they choose to leave Formula 1. He’s done the same thing as what I chose to do, leave but leave it open for one year after to go back.
“I think that’s the right option to do. But if the McLaren’s quick and it’s winning races, he’ll be back in Formula 1.”

[PapaofGags]

http://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12433/1...d-red-bull

Fernando Alonso has revealed to Sky Sports F1 he rejected a move to Red Bull prior to announcing his exit from F1 at the end of the year.
The Spaniard says he turned down an offer from the former world champions following Daniel Ricciardo's shock decision to quit for Renault.

"From one of the top three teams, l already had an offer a couple of times this year," Alonso told Sky F1's Ted Kravitz.

Asked if he was referring to Red Bull and whether they had offered him Ricciardo's seat, Alonso confirmed: "Yes."

Did Alonso already hint at Red Bull offer?

Alonso's revelation that he rejected Red Bull is seemingly at odds with the remarks of Christian Horner when the Red Bull boss ruled out Alonso replacing Ricciardo just a day after the Australian's bombshell.

"I have huge respect for Fernando, he is a great driver, a fantastic driver, but it's very difficult...he's tended to cause a bit of chaos wherever he's gone," Horner told F1's official podcast.
"I'm not sure it would be the healthiest thing for the team for Fernando to join. Our preference is to continue to invest in youth than take a driver who is obviously close to the end of his career."

But, in what appears retrospectively to have been a clear hint the Spaniard had already rebuffed an approach from Red Bull, the two-time world champion responded directly to Sky F1's story on Twitter with the hashtag 'FromlastweekNoThanks'

[LotusLover]

http://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12433/1...d-red-bull

Fernando Alonso has revealed to Sky Sports F1 he rejected a move to Red Bull prior to announcing his exit from F1 at the end of the year.
The Spaniard says he turned down an offer from the former world champions following Daniel Ricciardo's shock decision to quit for Renault.

"From one of the top three teams, l already had an offer a couple of times this year," Alonso told Sky F1's Ted Kravitz.

Asked if he was referring to Red Bull and whether they had offered him Ricciardo's seat, Alonso confirmed: "Yes."

Did Alonso already hint at Red Bull offer?

Alonso's revelation that he rejected Red Bull is seemingly at odds with the remarks of Christian Horner when the Red Bull boss ruled out Alonso replacing Ricciardo just a day after the Australian's bombshell.

"I have huge respect for Fernando, he is a great driver, a fantastic driver, but it's very difficult...he's tended to cause a bit of chaos wherever he's gone," Horner told F1's official podcast.
"I'm not sure it would be the healthiest thing for the team for Fernando to join. Our preference is to continue to invest in youth than take a driver who is obviously close to the end of his career."
But, in what appears retrospectively to have been a clear hint the Spaniard had already rebuffed an approach from Red Bull, the two-time world champion responded directly to Sky F1's story on Twitter with the hashtag 'FromlastweekNoThanks'

Hmmmm is Alonso telling porkies here, or is this Horner being his twattish self??