Alonso To Race At Indy Over Monaco
Historically many drivers have competed in more than one race series in a single season, Le Mans, Daytona and the Indy 500 being the big events attracting drivers worldwide from various disciplines, however more recently once a driver had secured an F1 seat it was very unlikely that we would see him driving in any other series save for promotional reasons due mainly to sponsorship and manufacturer conflictions, yes we may have seen Lotterer take a short race stint at Spa for Caterham in one of his many Le Mans winning years and, of course Hulkenberg becoming a Le Mans winner while doing a full F1 season but. This is a little different.
On the 12th of April 2017 it was announced that two time F1 champion and current Mclaren Honda driver, Fernando Alonso would be racing in the Indy 500 instead of the Monaco Grand Prix. Now, this is the difference. A lot of people are seeing this as a good thing, teams giving their drivers the chance to experience a different car or championship but to miss a race? I would have though that that would have been an absolute no no. I mean, can you imagine the Foo Fighters suddenly saying, "Actually we're not going to play Glastonbury but we'll be 4th on the bill on the second stage at Reading"?
Or lets look at this another way. Mclaren are letting their star driver race in a rival series on the weekend of (arguably) the biggest race on the F1 calendar. What does that say about the Mclaren / Alonso relationship? We all know he's been vocal about the performance in the past. Has he issued an ultimatum? Let me drive Indy or I walk? What next, he has also mentioned racing Le Mans, will he race an LMP1 in 2018? Will Mclaren let him to keep him happy? Also, what happens if Alonso injures himself and, as a result misses several races? Without wishing any ill luck on him it's not unlikely.
And what do the new owners think of this? One of the biggest names in one of the biggest teams opts not to compete in the sports biggest event? I can't help thinking Bernie would have had something to say.
Has Alonso had enough of F1? personally I think he has, Mclaren isn't anywhere near where it should or could be and may take a long time to recover. Alonso though. I feel will leave F1 after his contract expires and possibly move to the WEC or even just make himself available for such events as the Indy 500, Le Mans, Spa, Daytona 24 hrs. Who knows. Time will tell.
On the 12th of April 2017 it was announced that two time F1 champion and current Mclaren Honda driver, Fernando Alonso would be racing in the Indy 500 instead of the Monaco Grand Prix. Now, this is the difference. A lot of people are seeing this as a good thing, teams giving their drivers the chance to experience a different car or championship but to miss a race? I would have though that that would have been an absolute no no. I mean, can you imagine the Foo Fighters suddenly saying, "Actually we're not going to play Glastonbury but we'll be 4th on the bill on the second stage at Reading"?
Or lets look at this another way. Mclaren are letting their star driver race in a rival series on the weekend of (arguably) the biggest race on the F1 calendar. What does that say about the Mclaren / Alonso relationship? We all know he's been vocal about the performance in the past. Has he issued an ultimatum? Let me drive Indy or I walk? What next, he has also mentioned racing Le Mans, will he race an LMP1 in 2018? Will Mclaren let him to keep him happy? Also, what happens if Alonso injures himself and, as a result misses several races? Without wishing any ill luck on him it's not unlikely.
And what do the new owners think of this? One of the biggest names in one of the biggest teams opts not to compete in the sports biggest event? I can't help thinking Bernie would have had something to say.
Has Alonso had enough of F1? personally I think he has, Mclaren isn't anywhere near where it should or could be and may take a long time to recover. Alonso though. I feel will leave F1 after his contract expires and possibly move to the WEC or even just make himself available for such events as the Indy 500, Le Mans, Spa, Daytona 24 hrs. Who knows. Time will tell.
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