Formula 1 Racing

The emotional key to Alonso’s longevity as he reaches 400 F1 races

Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen made their F1 debuts together at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix

Formula 1 is currently gearing up for the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix. Or, put another way, the ‘Fernando Alonso 400’.

The double world champion has held F1’s record for the most GP starts since he overtook Kimi Raikkonen back in 2022. In reaching 400, he’s the first human being to reach such a milestone.

“Not good for your back, for your neck, for your spine!” he half-jokingly replies when I ask him about the physical toll of that uncharted territory.

Classic Alonso. Who, on discussing his upcoming race start achievement in the Austin paddock last week, insists he would “would love to race half of the 400 and win one more championship or win more races”.

“Those are the important statistics that you want to achieve,” he adds.

Alonso’s drive for further F1 success is well known. But, as we’ll go on to see, there’s something far deeper and more human at play too. First, however, more stats. Because in four centuries of GP starts, plenty accrue. 

Since he made his debut at the 2001 Australian GP, 36% of world championship F1 weekends have featured Alonso plying his trade – as per data released by his Aston Martin squad this week, with assistance from Autosport’s Forix guru, Joao Paulo Cunha.

Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen made their F1 debuts together at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix

Photo by: Sutton Images

Alonso has completed more than 72,750 laps in F1 weekend action and test sessions – including 21,578 race laps. He’s done 735 F1 pitstops. His record against his F1 team-mates stands at 292:107 in qualifying and, with 20 double DNFs for the teams he’s raced for since starting out with Minardi, 262:117 in GP races.

His F1 sabbatical yielded two Le Mans 24 Hours wins – the last of which, in 2019, is his most recent race victory in any category – a World Endurance Championship crown and a 24 Hours of Daytona win.

There is, however, a certain stat that needs examining here. How, thanks to his long career, which included racing in an era where such things were more common, several DNS stats appear on his record.

Forix therefore has Alonso officially reaching 400 GP starts at 2024’s Qatar round next month, but he’s celebrating the milestone this weekend as he wants to count the three events where he turned up and put the work in, only to be thwarted. In the case of the 2017 Russian GP, this happened on the formation lap in his McLaren.

“[Reaching 400 races] shows my love…

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