Fernando Alonso signs the longest contract of his career for two fundamental reasons

The Spanish driver Fernando Alonso and the Aston Martin Formula 1 team announced on Thursday the renewal of the contract that has united them for a year and a half. The Asturian will continue competing in the top category of motorsport at least until 2026, when the new regulations on the design of single-seaters come into force and when Honda becomes Aston Martin's engine supplier.

The duration of the new contract between Alonso and Aston Martin has not been made public, but the Spanish driver assures that it is a "multi-year agreement" and "the longest contract" he has signed in his sporting career, which means that he will remain linked to the British team even when he is no longer a Formula 1 driver.

"There were many factors that made Aston Martin the most attractive option. And it's not just 2026. As far as I'm concerned, it's a life project. It's the longest contract I've signed in my career," said the driver. Asturian during a videoconference in which the Efe agency participated.

"This is going to link me to Aston for many more years, even after I stop being a driver," acknowledged Alonso, who after Formula 1 could return to the Dakar Rally with Aston Martin or even to the World Endurance Championship (WEC). competition of which he was already champion in 2019 with the Toyota team. "For now F1 is the only thing on my mind and I can say that I will 100% return to the Dakar, we will see at Le Mans if there is any project in which I can help," Alonso acknowledged.

The Spanish driver does not even rule out racing in the United States IndyCar again to try to complete the Triple Crown of motorsports, an unofficial title awarded to those drivers who manage to win the three most important races in the world: the Monaco Grand Prix. of Formula 1, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Indianapolis 500, the only one he has yet to conquer (in Monaco and Le Mans he has won twice).

For this, the collaboration between Aston Martin and Honda will be essential from 2026, when the Japanese company becomes the new engine of the British team. The Spanish driver welcomes working with Honda again because of the possibilities that this opens up for him. "There is a lot of relationship with Japan and 2026 is attractive, especially after the experience with McLaren-Honda and at Indy. Now we have this new opportunity to work together, something that is frankly attractive to me," said Alonso.

The double F1 world champion and the 24 Hours of Le Mans plans to remain linked to the competition and the Aston Martin team after retiring as a Formula 1 driver, not before 2026, and completing a career of more than 40 years in the world of motorsports. "It would be more than 25 years of experience in F1 and between 10 or 15 outside it. That is, more than 40 years in the world of motorsports. That is something beneficial for the team and very attractive for me as well," he revealed. Alonzo.

The Asturian assured that Aston Martin was always his first choice because of "loyalty to the project" and because it offered him a "multi-year" contract. "It was important, I'm not going to lie, that the agreement was multi-year. Committing to a one-year project didn't make sense. By this I don't mean that I had offers from here or elsewhere for a single year or something similar. From the first conversation with Aston, the most attractive thing from the beginning is everything we are building here," said Alonso, who trusts in the team's talent to continue improving.

"Last year the new 'campus' was finished, this year the wind tunnel will arrive and then the new regulations will arrive, with Honda as a partner. We have very bright and talented people in the technical part of the team who will benefit from the new tunnel. wind and all the new facilities at Silverstone," he said.

Aston Martin's agreements with Honda and with Aramco, the state oil company of Saudi Arabia and the largest oil company in the world, have also been fundamental in Alonso's decision. "All of that was mandatory, very important for me. Part of my decision to continue with Aston is that Honda arrives in 2026 and that they are with Aramco, which is the best and largest sponsor in the world," Alonso acknowledged.

The Spaniard is delighted to be working with Honda again. "Honda, as a manufacturer, is not only a key figure in F1, but also in other categories. It is in the world of motorsport and motorsport in general. It is a company that I always respected. Things did not work out when they entered again ( to F1), in the years at McLaren. But they have fixed things and at the moment they dominate this sport, in which they have been winning World Championships (with Red Bull) in recent years," explained Alonso.

"So I think they already have a very strong foundation looking to 2026. And they have the capacity to build very big things. I know they are very motivated and I also want to experience things related to the new regulations and in terms of fuel sustainable too. I believe that this relationship with Honda and the one we already have with Aramco will be a 'win-win' situation in which we will all win," he predicted.