“More to eat. Here to stay (I stay, in Spanish).” With those words published on his social networks, the driver Fernando Alonso confirmed that he will continue at Aston Martin. The Asturian, who is experiencing his second season with the Silverstone team, has signed a “multi-year” contract at least until 2026.
The Asturian, holder of two world championships with Renault in 2005 and 2006 and who last year achieved a creditable fourth place in the classification with Aston Martin, has finally been inclined to continue in Lawrence Stroll's team, after some rumors that placed him in the orbit of other teams, such as Red Bull.
In fact, in the last few hours it had been noted that Alonso welcomed joining the Austrian team as long as its current star driver, Max Verstappen, left. However, this Thursday afternoon it was confirmed that Alonso, who has just finished sixth in the Japanese Grand Prix and is in eighth place in the World Championship, will continue with the British.
“Securing a long-term union with Fernando is fantastic news. “We have built a strong working relationship over the past 18 months and share the same determination to see this project succeed,” Luxembourger Mike Krack, Aston Martin team manager, explained in a statement. “We have been maintaining constant dialogue over the past months and Fernando has been faithful to his word: when he decided if he wanted to continue driving he would talk to us in the first instance. Fernando has shown that he believes in us; and we believe in him,” Krack added.
At the moment the exact duration of Alonso's new contract has not been specified. However, what has emerged is that it is a multi-year contract that will unite him, at least, until 2026 with the Silverstone team.
The driver, with 32 victories and 106 podiums in the premier class -eight last season with Aston Martin-, has just finished sixth in the Japanese Grand Prix and is in eighth place in the World Championship, after a somewhat disappointing start although improvements are expected facing the next big prizes.
"Securing a long-term partnership with Fernando is fantastic news. We have built a strong working relationship over the past 18 months and share the same determination to see this project succeed," explains Luxembourger Mike Krack, team leader. of Aston Martin, in the statement made public by the team.
"We have been maintaining constant dialogue over the past months and Fernando has been true to his word: when he decided if he wanted to continue driving, he would talk to us first. Fernando has shown that he believes in us; and we believe in him," says Krack.
