Alonso Was Approved By Honda Before His Contract With Aston Martin Was Signed
F1Sunday, 14 April 2024 at 19:00
Honda Racing Corporation president Koji Watanabe revealed in a recent interview how Aston Martin approached him before they offered Alonso a contract to sign.
Fernando Alonso extended his contract with Aston Martin a few days ago. Despite being 42 years old, he apparently still feels fresh and motivated enough to sign a "multi-year" deal at least until 2026.
It was a move that made sense for both the British team and the double-world champion. Aston Martin will need an experienced driver who will guide the team and give relevant feedback on the car's feeling going into the new regulations.
The team will also need a consistent, adaptable, and fast driver, and Alonso is all of the above. He, on the other hand, wants a car that will allow him to compete for race wins and maybe even Championships, and Aston Martin might be a strong contender starting in 2026.
In 2026, Aston Martin will partner with Honda (which is now producing power units for Red Bull), which should give the team a significant boost.
While the collaboration between the two companies hasn't really officially started yet, Honda already has a say in Aston Martin's driver pairing, as Koji Watanabe hinted:
"We had many conversations with Aston Martin regarding our partnership starting in 2026. During that time, we exchanged opinions about drivers too and we shared an understanding between us and Aston Martin that Alonso was definitely a top-class driver."
"Aston Martin asked us if there would be any problems from Honda if they extended Alonso's contract. The situation was shared at various stages."
Although the president of Honda Corporation asserted he had no demands on the British F1 team, he also suggested it is essential for him and his company to discuss future driver decisions.
"But Honda did not make any requests regarding this matter. In any case, we should naturally discuss what kind of driver line-up we need to win, and it was in this context that the team decided to extend Alonso's contract."
Honda is in F1 because it wants to win. To win with Aston Martin, they will need a strong driver pairing, and this might be the first point of potential future problems in this collaboration.
Aston Martin's second driver is Lance Stroll. In 2023, he was far off Alonso's pace, and in 2024, he hasn't been able to step up so far. Despite that, the team is expected to prolong his contract as he is the son of the team's owner- Lawrence Stroll.
If he isn't able to improve over the upcoming two seasons, Honda might start putting pressure on Aston Martin to change their driver.
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