Fernando Alonso’s performance in Brazil confirmed that the 42-year-old Spaniard had one of his best moments behind the wheel and beyond. Twenty years in the ‘big circus’ He continues to give master classes whenever his car allows.
Once again, Alonso reached the consensus of international drivers, engineers, fans and journalists, elevating his fight for third place at Interlagos against Checo Pérez to the ‘masterpiece’ category.
Praise already started in the same period. Winning, Max VerstappenOn the way to his 52nd victory in F1, he admitted that during his final three laps on the track he was distracted while watching the duel between Checo and Fernando on the giant screens installed in the stands: “I was almost going straight in Turn 4,” he explained. George Russell, He said he was unable to finish the race, spoke to the press in the mixed zone and was ‘stunned’ by the close finish between the Mexican and the Spaniard.
Lando NorrisHe wanted to take a photo with Fernando and Max, who were in second place on the podium: “Me, with two champions” he shared on his own networks. When they ask Alonso Because of the comparison between his defense in Brazil and his defense against Michael Schumacher at Monza 2005, he turned around, looked at Lando and asked: “How old were you?” Norris replied shyly: “Five.”
When it was his turn to speak to the press Alonsoit was Check The person who interrupted him, hugged him and left a message to the new generations: “Fernando is a driver you can fight with. He would have crashed in this situation with 95% of the grid. We showed that there is another F1.” “It is possible by fighting to the limit, but it is fair,” he warned.
Toni CuquerellaThe F1 engineer and current commentator for DAZN summed up Alonso’s success and summed up the magical moment of the entire season in simple data: “Alonso crossed the finish line 4.45 meters ahead of Sergio Pérez, who was going 26 km/h faster than Fernando. “He could have passed him after just 0.616 seconds. So if Interlagos’ finish line had been 51.6 meters later, Alonso would not have finished third.”
Dani JuncadellaThe Mercedes endurance driver tried to convey his professional vision to emphasize Alonso’s value: “You don’t realize how complex what he is doing is. Against a car, Red Bull normally gives him 20-30 seconds. After 20 laps, he has 2 laps to go. “The coming race, hoping to find a chance without giving up and looking for alternative routes… Good luck Fernando. How nice.”
Pau Gasol or Antonio Banderas were some of those praised Alonso through their social networks. “Silence after Alonso’s success!!! A podium to remember,” the basketball legend wrote. The Malaga actor said, “The race I just witnessed and Fernando being on the podium was a historic event. What pride!!!” he tweeted.
Headlines overlap: Alonso’s ‘Master Class’
The international press also tells about Alonso’s magnificent fight with Checo and he finds himself against a pilot who no longer has a title. “One thing we have to talk about, yes or no, is that Alonso finished a fantastic third place, finishing in the purest MotoGP style, due to the difference at the finish line. The Spaniard never threw in the towel on Sergio Pérez with Red Bull.” This drove the Mexican crazy and almost left him without the option of using DRS. Pérez tried everything, even overtaking him in the penultimate round, and it looks like this will be the decisive move in the fight. However, in the last lap, Alonso took the lead again and survived the middle in the last attack with an advantage of 53 thousandths. New evidence that talent does not understand age and Verstappen is the only one who makes a difference when he gets into Red Bull”, he analyzes Gazzetta dello Sport:
BBC expert is stronger: “They really broke the mold when they made Fernando Alonso.. The 42-year-old Spaniard continues to set standards that few drivers can achieve and many others must achieve. He delivered a new and outstanding performance at the Brazilian GP, on par with the best of all time. We saw a few more, especially at the start of the season, when his return to the top in a highly competitive Aston Martin was the story of 2023. The race to return to the podium behind Max Verstappen and Lando Norris is as good as anyone’s. It was on par with all the masterpieces and was undoubtedly one of the best performances of his career. Let’s just say we’ve seen a lot of things like this.”
“Alonso took Checo to school”, headlines FOX Sport México, is very strong against Checo Pérez. Less enthusiastically, the French from L’Equipe echoed the two-time Spanish champion’s ‘masterclass’: “Fernando did his science and showed his F1 knowledge to get on the podium in Brazil.”