Fernando Alonso Reveals What He Really Thinks Of Michael Schumacher And Rivals

Fernando Alonso is considered one of the greatest drivers to have ever raced in Formula One. After denying Michael Schumacher his eighth driver’s title in 2005, Alonso has had fierce battles with other notable world champions, including Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel to name a few. During a recent F1: Beyond The Grid podcast, the Spanish driver revealed his personal thoughts about his fiercest rivals of his career. Here’s what he had to say.

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Fernando Alonso: One Of The Greats

At the 2001 Australian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso made his Formula 1 debut with Minardi. Soon after, he built a strong relationship with Renault. The Spaniard along with the Renault F1 Team is credited to end Ferrari and Michael’s dominance in 2005 by claiming both the drivers and constructors world championship titles. The feat they repeated the following year. In 2007, Alonso moved to McLaren, where he paired up with rookie Lewis Hamilton, with whom he had a dramatic in-team battle.

For his 2008-2009 seasons, Alonso returned to Renault. But then moved to Ferrari to replace Kimi Raikkonen at the Scuderia from 2010. For his final season at Ferrari in 2014, Alonso was paired with Raikkonen when the Finn returned to the sport. In 2015, He would return to McLaren, but his fortunes were not in his favor.

So Alonso attempted his hand at a few other disciplines. He drove at the 2017 Indy 500, finishing 29th on his debut. Took a sabbatical from F1 to race for Toyota to win at Le Mans twice and the world endurance championship as well. He even attempted the grueling Dakar Rally in 2020 before returning to F1 with the same outfit he won his world titles with, now branded as the Alpine F1 Team.

On the F1: Beyond The Grid podcast, Alonso revealed that a third would title would mean a lot. However, he added, “I'm not desperate to get it. I don’t think it will change my whole career or my way of seeing the sport. I'm a competitive person, and I will do what I can with what I have in my hands to.”

Fernando Alonso’s Thoughts On Michael Schumacher

Despite the fierce rivalry with Michael Schumacher, it was evident that Alonso has the utmost respect for him. He said “Honestly, in 2005, we were racing against the legends. Against Michael, Against Ferrari… It was an intense battle”

When asked if he brought out the best in him, Alonso replied, “Absolutely, I consider Michael as the biggest rival of my career.”

Alonso added that to him, Michael was “a teacher in many ways because I was young, I was just coming into Formula One and I found myself fighting for a world championship that maybe I was not ready for… I had Michael alongside, with all his knowledge and his approach of never giving up. It was always special.”

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Fernando Alonso: The Other Rivals

Of course, a few other drivers brought out the best of Fernando Alonso. He says, “For sure, the champions of my generation like Lewis [Hamilton]. We didn’t have the competition that I was looking for. We shared a team in 2007, and for the general people, we had the biggest fight you could. But we both were not ready. He was a rookie coming into the sport, and I was not performing at my best.”

Hamilton and Alonso had a fierce battle that year as teammates. But the battle looked to get the better of them both. As Kimi Raikkonen went on to win the driver’s title for Ferrari that year.

Alonso believes, “I think we both could have done better.” However, in the following years, Alonso feels he was never able to have an even fight with Hamilton. He added, “That's a missing point in my career. He [Hamilton] is a legend of the sport and, like Michael, he will push you to the limit”.

The other driver Alonso mentioned was Sebastian Vettel with whom he had a strong battle in the final years of the V8 era. “We didn’t have the same package to compete wheel to wheel. But we still fought for the championship till the last race like in 2010 and 2012. You have to perform your best if you want to beat a slightly superior Red Bull package”.

The 40-year-old driver will become the oldest driver on the grid next year after Kimi Raikkonen will retire at the end of the 2021 season. Currently driving for the Alpine F1 Team, Alonso took his 98th career podium at the Qatar Grand Prix finishing third. The last time the former world champion stood on the podium was back in 2014 at the Hungarian Grand Prix, as he finished second for Ferrari.

Source: F1.com, F1: Beyond The Grid podcast

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