Renault confirms Alonso’s F1 test return in Barcelona
The Renault Formula 1 team has finally confirmed that Fernando Alonso will kickstart his return when he tests at the Circuit de Catalunya today.
In a short tweet, accompanied with a video clip featuring the Spanish driver, Renault said: “It’s true [Alonso is testing]. Today. In Barcelona. At the wheel of the R.S.20.”
Two-time F1 champion Alonso will gain his initial on-circuit experience with the Renault package by running the current car for a filming or promotional day, with the usual 100km limit. The outing will be his first for Renault since the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the end of 2009, before his move to Ferrari for the 2010 campaign.
Alonso’s most recent F1 mileage came when he ran for two days in a Renault-powered McLaren in Bahrain in April 2019. His last competitive outing was at the Indy 500 in August with the Arrow McLaren SP team.
Alonso has spent a lot of time at the Renault’s Enstone factory in recent weeks, meeting with the engineers and trying the simulator.
Next year he will be partnered by Esteban Ocon in the renamed Alpine team, and on his arrival in Barcelona on Monday made his ambitions clear.
“With the desire to logically get on we have done work in the simulator and work in the factory,” he told Spanish media. “Doing fifth, seventh or ninth does not change much, in sport you either win or you don't win.”
After Daniel Ricciardo’s third-place finish in the Eifel GP at the Nurburgring last weekend, Renault team boss Cyril Abiteboul underlined Alonso’s commitment to the project by noting that he had been in regular contact through the weekend.
“We received a message before, during and after the race,” said Abiteboul. “You would be impressed to measure his level of interest. And I think that when he initially joined the team, and in his communication when we announced him, it was very much about 2022.
“And the more the season is going and with the team's progression, the car progression, the more he starts to be interested in 2021.
"I think Fernando is like a big shark. And as soon as he starts to feel the blood he wants to attack. That's what I see – I see a shark very hungry.”
How cold Nurburgring weather added heat to third-place battle
Alonso says comeback Renault test “a new beginning”
Why Red Bull can win a Spanish GP that looked perfect for Ferrari
Formula 1's return to Spain on Friday ended with Ferrari leading the way from Mercedes, while Red Bull could only manage third fastest overall courtesy of Max Verstappen. But its chances of victory are far from remote with a deeper dig into the times despite Ferrari's strong start...
The key aspects of Porsche and Audi's planned F1 entries
The VW Group’s German superpowers of sportscar racing have all but confirmed they are coming to F1 when the next set of engine rules come into force in 2026. Here's why both manufacturers are all set to take the plunge, and crucially how it might work
How Vegas went from byword for F1 indifference to grand Liberty coup
Holding a race in Las Vegas – party central, a city of dreams and decadence and, yes, more than a smattering of tackiness – has been on Liberty Media’s most-wanted list since it acquired Formula 1’s commercial rights. But, as LUKE SMITH explains, F1 has been here before and the relationship didn’t work out
Why de Vries' FP1 outing could add a new path to his current crossroads
A Formula 2 and Formula E champion, Nyck de Vries is currently considering where his future in motorsport lies. Continuing in WEC and Formula E is possible and he's also courted glances Stateside after impressing in an IndyCar test. But ahead of his Formula 1 FP1 debut with Williams, he could have another option if he impresses...
Why Leclerc's crash shouldn't put off F1 drivers tasting history
OPINION: For a demo run ahead of Monaco's Historique Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc was blessed with the opportunity to drive Niki Lauda's former Ferrari 312B3 - but a brake failure at Rascasse suggested Leclerc's Monaco hoodoo transcended contemporary F1. Although an awkward incident, Leclerc deserves credit for embracing F1's history.
Why the lack of "needle" between Red Bull and Ferrari is a mirage
OPINION: The fight for the 2022 Formula 1 world titles between Red Bull and Ferrari so far features little of the public animosity that developed between the former and Mercedes last year. But that isn’t to say things are full on friendly or won’t get much worse very quickly…
The underdog F1 squad that thrust Senna into the limelight
The Toleman TG184 was the car that could, according to legend, have given Ayrton Senna his first F1 win but for Alain Prost and Jacky Ickx at Monaco in 1984. That could be stretching the boundaries of the truth a little, but as STUART CODLING explains, the team's greatest legacy was in giving the Brazilian prodigy passed over by bigger outfits an opportunity
Why Aston Martin is unlikely to repeat Jaguar’s F1 mistakes
Two famous manufacturer teams born out of humble midfield origins, splashing the cash while attempting to rise to the top of F1 in record time. There are clear parallels between Lawrence Stroll’s Aston Martin and the doomed Jaguar Racing project of 22 years ago, but Mark Gallagher believes struggling Aston can avoid a similar fate.