Fernando Alonso thinks about racing 24 hours a day, says former F1 driver

Fernando Alonso has returned to F1 after two years, which is certainly massive news. However, some fans nurse doubts over his intensity and relentlessness, having spent a certain period of time out of the sport. Friend and countryman Pedro de la Rosa who was formerly an F1 racer himself, has rubbished any such doubts that persist in the minds of the viewers. He highlighted the recent Bahrain Grand Prix where Alonso qualified P9 and raced well within the top 10. De la Rosa believes that the 39-year-old remains as focussed now as he was in the early 2000s when he first began his F1 career.

“That’s his strength really – Fernando thinks about motor racing 24 hours a day. Everyone says the same about a champion, about a racer, but actually when you say it about Fernando you mean it,” said De la Rosa on the F1 Nation podcast, as quoted by the official website of Formula 1.

“I’ve been with him when he’s not racing in Formula 1 or in WEC [World Endurance Championship] and he’s thinking about ‘we should do a karting race together again’. He’s always thinking ‘what can I race this weekend?’,” he added.

“This is quite unique – I’ve been with many drivers. Myself, the weekend I had off I wanted to do other things – I wanted to be at home, I wanted to see my kids, I wanted to be on the bike. But for him it’s not his work, it’s his passion. He’s a passionate man and I think that’s his biggest strength – he doesn’t have any other distractions in his life. He’s a committed man, 100%,” stated De la Rosa.

Alonso’s Hunger At 39 “Really Fantastic”

The Spaniard further termed Alonso’s hunger after making a comeback as “really fantastic”.

“To see him, at his age, coming back, being this hungry is really fantastic,” he said.

“I personally get a bit disappointed that everyone is asking him about his age and if he’s quick enough now that he’s close to 40. But I always got those type of jokes that young drivers made about myself,” added De la Rosa.

“It is a bit unfair to say he has been retired from F1 for two years, I mean he has been racing at full level in WEC or Dakar, he’s always been karting, he’s always been in contact with motor racing – it’s not like he’s been out of the sport,” he concluded.