Fernando Alonso reveals coming close to retiring in 2009 and not joining Ferrari
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Fernando Alonso could have never raced for Ferrari and especially could have not continued to be the ultimate veteran of F1. The Spaniard, during his 400th Grand Prix weekend in Mexico, shared a behind-the-scenes story about his career.
It seems that in 2009, Fernando Alonso seriously contemplated retiring from the top category of motorsport to focus on other things in life. Considering that he ended up joining Ferrari the following year, one might think that we would not have seen the Spaniard in Maranello.
His initial plan, as revealed in a recent interview for digital portal Soymotor, was to retire at the end of his contract with McLaren. After winning two Formula 1 world titles and experiencing the glorious moment with Renault, the Spaniard moved to Woking with McLaren. However, after just one year, he returned to the French team that had made him world champion.
In 2009, Fernando Alonso considered retiring from Formula 1.
“When I won the championship in 2006 and arrived at McLaren, I had a three-year contract: 2007, 2008, and 2009. I was 99% sure that 2009 would be my last Formula 1 season. That was my plan, a very clear plan in my mind. I won the championship in 2005 and 2006, signed with McLaren for three years, and that was my last contract in my mind,” the Spaniard revealed to Soymotor.
He added, “I won the championship twice. Being a Formula 1 champion went beyond my wildest imagination. So what else could I do here? When I signed this contract with McLaren, I expected to win more races and championships. Then at some point, I thought I wanted a family and wanted to do normal things, have normal days.” – he pointed out.
And how does he feel about reaching his 400th Grand Prix? “I don’t think the Fernando of 2001 thinks anything strange about the 400th Grand Prix, because he didn’t think too much about the future. But for the Fernando of 2007, it would certainly be a surprise,” the Spaniard concluded.
Source: f1ingenerale
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