Tag: F1

The Alonso Curse Revisited: Nothing Newey Under the Sun

The Alonso Curse Revisited: Nothing Newey Under the Sun

There are only a few certainties in life. Death, taxes, and Fernando Alonso being in the wrong car at the wrong time. Three years ago, it looked like the infamous Alonso Curse could be lifting. Aston Martin was starting to see front-of-the-pack action. Alonso was on the podium the first three races of the season. Had a time traveller told you back then that by 2026 Alonso would be in an Adrian Newey car, you’d be expecting him to make space in his trophy cabinet for a third world title.

Just the notion of them being in the same team would have sounded far-fetched back then. Newey was Red Bull for the rest of his career. Until Christian Horner became the focal point of a team split. Newey was lured across by more than just Lawrence Stroll’s money (that undoubtedly helped). He was given an active role in shaping more than just the design of cars. He’d be a shareholder and a person with genuine authority. Aston Martin had shiny new facilities and a good track record of investment.

Newey said he needed a new challenge. The option Ferrari presumably offered was his old role in red overalls. Aston Martin may have – initially, at least – overextended Newey. Attempting to put his Midas touch on everything within reach. He was announced as the Team Principal, only for that role to blur and slowly retract as his position as Managing Technical Partner was reaffirmed. Newey is the most successful F1 car designer of all time. It doesn’t mean he can run all technical aspects and the race weekend to the same exacting standards. The attempt to do so will only create a dilution of excellence elsewhere.

This isn’t to say Aston Martin have struggled this year because Newey was spread too thin. A ghost from Alonso’s past – Honda – played a very large part. Honda was reunited with Newey in name, but it now appears many from the Red Bull Honda days had moved on, believing Honda’s time in the sport had elapsed. What Lawrence Stroll made a deal with was a Honda F1 reboot, not the version responsible for Red Bull victories.

It wasn’t just a performance issue with Honda. The vibration was so bad from the integration between engine, battery mounting, gearbox and transmission that Lance Stroll and Alonso limited their running time in the car to avoid permanent injury. But Alonso has been living with the curse for so long, not even this rattled him. The 2017 Honda engine at McLaren suffered from vibration issues. These resonance issues would induce electrical faults after shaking components beyond their finite life. The 2026 sequel was all that and more.

Alonso has largely taken it in his stride. He speaks of being at peace with his career, his achievements. It would be wrong to disbelieve him. Age brings about calmness and reflection. It only becomes a problem for a driver when it dampens down the fire too much. For Alonso, there are signs it still burns fierce. He spoke before the season that he’d be more inclined to carry on if the 2026 car wasn’t perfect, if there was still a challenge. His career choices have led him into situations where victories don’t come with trophies, but achieving the impossible in flawed machinery. 

He still faces that challenge at Aston Martin.

But he also knows time is starting to run out for one last taste of victory. When he declared the Barcelona Grand Prix could be his last, it revealed he is uncertain when he’ll call time on his career. A new contract with Aston Martin has yet to be agreed and his old friend at Alpine, Flavio Briatore, has been linked with recruiting Alonso.

It has all the ingredients for one final, poorly timed, Alonso move. On paper, Alpine may make some sort of sense. They’ll be using Mercedes power in 2027 and that currently looks like the most tempting engine bet on the grid. The team has a big new title sponsor: Gucci. Alonso and Gucci go well together. 

All the signals also align with fulfilling the final phase of The Curse.

He would be leaving Aston Martin at the exact moment a true Newey car is unleashed on the grid. This year’s variant is part-Newey, with Newey himself split into too many parts. The 2027 car is supposedly all Newey. Who wouldn’t want to get behind the steering wheel of that?

We’ll find out if Alonso rolls the dice one last time and finally gets a good hand. There is no perfect choice. A Newey design doesn’t guarantee a title. Lewis Hamilton’s haul attests to that. But being in one certainly improves your chances. Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel, Mika Häkkinen all won multiple world titles in a Newey car. Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve all took one apiece for Williams. Having Newey design the car gives a driver a strong hand.

Those four Williams titles highlight an Aston Martin trait that appealed to Newey and could convince Alonso to stay. Lawrence Stroll is seen by Newey as a genuine throwback. He’s seen as an active owner, in the style of Frank Williams. Stroll is giving Newey the keys to the kingdom but he’s not an absent, faceless money man. Alonso has a good relationship with Briatore so there’s a romanticised version where he has one last Enstone chapter.  

Whatever he chooses next, it won’t be for “the challenge”. Being at the back of the grid for the whole of 2026 is challenging enough. It will be where he thinks – on the balance of probability – he stands the best chance of seeing a race win again. His options are clear: Mercedes power versus Newey design.

It’s the sort of decision that comes down to a coin toss. A 50/50. Within that choice is another factor that could swing the pendulum back to Aston Martin. At Alpine, he would likely be paired with Pierre Gasly. That would be a notable step up from Lance Stroll. Suddenly, he could be facing the George Russell dilemma: fight for a drive in the fastest car (not that the Alpine is expected to be this, but it will have the best engine) only to be outperformed by your team mate.

If Newey delivers a race-winning Aston Martin, it will be Fernando, not Lance, claiming those wins. If the Alpine becomes competitive, it’s plausible Gasly reveals the effects of Father Time on Alonso.

Which turns the 50/50 choice into a three-way split.

He could retire. After years of unfortunate timing in the transfer market, he may well decide he can’t face the prospect of another long year of uncertainty – or worse – watching the car he could have been in outperform the one he chose every race weekend.

Of the three choices, retirement is the one this writer fears most. Alonso has a claim to be the best driver of his generation. He’s now with the best designer in the history of the sport. It would be a shame not to see how it plays out. Even if the progress is slow to start, a Newey car with some Fernando DNA sounds like something worth sticking around for. It seems almost impossible the results wouldn’t eventually follow.

Curses can be lifted. Newey could well be the man to perform an exorcism. If it’s just poor timing and coincidence, probability states he has to make the right choice at some point.

If it’s just good old-fashioned luck, he’s due a bit before he hangs up his helmet.

Has The Alonso Curse Been Lifted?

Has The Alonso Curse Been Lifted?

In July 2017 this writer asked a simple question in the article: Is Alonso Cursed?

Recently, that article has been viewed on a regular basis, presumably as people take to search engines looking for all things Alonso following his switch to Aston Martin. Early signs (just two races and a promising pre-season) indicate the Spaniard has finally timed the transfer market correctly.

His move from Alpine had a few factors which made it a key story in F1’s transfer circus. The pre-cursor was four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel announcing his retirement from the sport. He appeared genuinely at ease with the decision. To such an extent, I doubt he looks upon this year’s AMR2023 with much envy. It wasn’t dissimilar (using that phrase with Germans could open up a Gary Lineker moment) to the way his hero Michael Schumacher stepped aside at Mercedes when they were in the hunt for Lewis Hamilton.

When the itch has been scratched, the fire inside resembles ambers, it’s time to leave the paddock behind.

This is where Alonso differs. His passion continues to bleed into every career choice. Critics will point out he’s played a large part in his own misfortune. It’s acknowledged he’s demanding. His new boss, billionaire Lawrence Stroll, has said he embraces this aspect of Alonso’s character. Drive and focus is great for an emerging team who lack championship experience. It proves problematic when Fernando’s frustrations kick-in.

Alpine may have endured all they could stomach of Alonso’s demands. They offered a one-year deal. This was like playing a game of chicken. It shows they were prepared to call his bluff, and were happy with the risk if him leaving. This was when they thought it was possible to replace him with their rookie reserve driver Oscar Piastri.

A lesson here in checking the small print and finer details of contracts: Piastri signed for McLaren, a move confirmed as legitimate by the FIA’s contract recognition board. This condemned the likeable Daniel Ricciardo to a year as Red Bull’s reserve driver.

Alonso claims the major aspect in deciding to move was the feeling of being wanted. Could this be the first time he felt personally sought after? Teams in the past have needed his raw speed and have been willing to manage his personality. At Aston Martin, Stroll sold it as a new home where his character traits were welcome.

For Alonso, who must have been confident he wasn’t moving down the pack, the longer contract and better personal connection sealed the deal. He must be aware time is now his main enemy if he’s to join the other five men who are in the history books as three-time F1 World Champions. He wasn’t getting a ride at Red Bull or Mercedes, so signing with Stroll’s affluent outfit made sense.

It was Lawrence Stroll who took the biggest gamble. Alonso arriving at a project – for all his undeniable talent – usually places a hex on that year’s car. Sure, he extracts every last millisecond from its potential, but usually they are seconds away from the podium spots in terms of performance.

And then there’s the strong personality. Much is made about how Lawrence’s son, Lance Stroll, has been gifted his drive in Formula 1. Nothing will expose any flaws in his ability like being paired with Fernando Alonso. Surely, Lawrence will have to favour Alonso’s requests over his own son’s. But iron sharpens iron, and Lance has already silenced some critics following his Bahrain effort. He drove with injured wrists, defying advice to rest and skip the race.

It’s a long season. Two races can’t provide enough information to state the Alonso Curse has been lifted. Ferrari and Mercedes will be working hard to close the gap to Red Bull, let alone Aston Martin. It does appear he’s starting a new team from a strong position for a change. As he secured his one-hundredth podium in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, he’s sent a strong signal he’s finally back for one last shot.

What was notable, was how relaxed he appeared in interviews when that podium was initially rescinded. Is there going to be anything more dangerous than an in-form Alonso, in a fast car, who keeps his emotions in check and doesn’t get rattled? 

UEFA and F1 to Complete Seasons Together in Abu Dhabi

UEFA and F1 to Complete Seasons Together in Abu Dhabi

An agreement has been made between UEFA and liberty media to ensure the commercial and sporting integrity of the Champions League and Formula 1 survive during the coronavirus outbreak. Plans have been drawn up for a closed-doors Super Tournament in Abu Dhabi. The state will host a truncated Champions League tournament from a single venue, with multiple matches staged each day.

The Abu Dhabi F1 circuit will be used for sprint races on the days between football matches. The track has several configurations and the belief is the spectacle of numerous shorter races – something seen in junior formulae – will go some way to make up for the loss of the high-flying global tour.

UEFA will invoke Clause 14.7 from its combined agreement with member associations to void domestic leagues to ensure their crown jewel competition can be completed. It’s understood there are reservations to the move in Madrid and Germany over fears Sheikh Mansour, a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family, could use the tournament for political favour following Manchester City’s trouble with Financial Fair Play.

Both Liberty Media and UEFA will increase their respective prize funds – with the assistance of the Abu Dhabi royal family – to convince teams and nations the benefits outweigh any downsides.

Once the deal is officially ratified, it’s expected the first two weeks in August will be revealed as dates for the tournament. Football will then go into a shortened pre-season phase, Formula 1 may pause the season again in the hope it can be revived later in the year.