Fernando Alonso will remain with Aston Martin beyond this season after the team announced it had extended its contract with the two-times world champion.
He joined the Silverstone-based team for the start of last season, taking eight podium finishes in his first year in British Racing Green.
The 42-year-old has signed a multi-year extension with Aston Martin, keeping him at the team until at least the end of the 2026 season. He will therefore reunite with Honda, who will join Aston Martin as their power unit suppliers for the next generation of V6 hybrid turbo power units for that season.
Team principal Mike Krack said that signing Alonso to a long-term extension was “fantastic news” for his team.
“We have built a strong working relationship over the last 18 months and we share the same determination to see this project succeed,” Krack said. “We have been in constant dialogue over the last few months and Fernando has been true to his word: when he decided he wanted to continue racing, he talked to us first. Fernando has shown he believes in us, and we believe in him.
“Fernando is hungry for success, driving better than ever, is fitter than ever, and is completely dedicated to making Aston Martin a competitive force. This multi-year agreement with Fernando takes us into 2026 when we begin our works power unit partnership with Honda. We look forward to creating more incredible memories and achieving further success together.”
Alonso is the most experienced grand prix driver of all time with 381 race starts in his Formula 1 career. He is due to become the first driver ever to reach 400 grands prix near the end of the season.
He is the oldest driver currently racing in Formula 1. This extension will mean he will be older than Michael Schumacher was when the seven-times world champion raced in his final grand prix in Brazil in 2012.
Alonso has scored 24 of Aston Martin’s 33 points over the opening four rounds of the 2024 season so far. He qualified fifth and finished sixth in last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, describing his performance as one of the top five best of his career.
A double world champion in 2005 and 2006 while racing for Renault, Alonso has 32 grand prix victories, 106 podium finishes and 22 pole positions to his name. However, it has been over a decade since his last grand prix victory, which he took in the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and
Formula 1
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at RaceFans…