F1: Will Fernando Alonso Go To Ferrari Next Year?

[CVT]

It's final! FA will be back on Renault Team next season. He doesn't want to be with LH and the rest of McLaren team. It was on BBC six o'clock news this evening.

The news this morning tells us that this isn't official yet, but with great likelihood.....

4000:play_ball:

FROM: http://www.7days.ae

Renault eager to rescue Alonso
Last Updated : Tuesday 02 Oct, 2007 -

FERNANDO ALONSO’s McLaren future may be in the balance, but the two time world champion has been guaranteed a drive at former team Renault the moment he decides to leave his current outfit. The Spaniard is currently second in the standings, but the chances of a third straight title are slim as he trails team-mate Lewis Hamilton by 12 points with just 20 available in the two remaining races.

All has not seemed well between the drivers at McLaren. Spaniard Alonso has claimed that Hamilton is favoured by boss Ron Dennis. And he has also fallen out with both his team-mate and Dennis on separate occasions this season.
But despite appearing to be something of an awkward customer, Alonso has been backed by former team boss Flavio Briatore. Alonso also aired his grievances about Renault last season, but Briatore said: “I told Fernando that the moment he is free from McLaren we would be pleased to have him back.”
Briatore was critical of McLaren’s decision to treat both Alonso and rookie Hamilton the same way. “If, before signing the contract, they told Fernando, ‘come with us, but you won’t have any sort of advantage’, he wouldn’t have gone. If you hire a world champion, then you must give him the number one status.”

On Sunday, prior to clinching a fourth win of the season at a rain-lashed Japanese Grand Prix, Hamilton claimed he would rather not work with Alonso again next season.

And yesterday, Alonso appeared to echo that sentiment as he said: “I’d be delighted if I didn’t carry on with Hamilton. If we are not together next season and I can go to a good car, then great. If we have to carry on together then we will have another great battle.”

Rumours abound regarding Alonso’s situation next season. But the 26-year-old played down suggestions he was set to walk away and take a year out. And he also cooled speculation he was set for a drive with Ferrari. “It hasn’t entered into my plans not to race next year,” he said. “I don’t have any news about Ferrari.

“They have a contract with Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa for next year, it’s not a possibility that has entered into my thoughts for the coming year.”
Heikki Kovalainen, who finished runner-up to Hamilton in Fuji as Alonso crashed out, has urged people to remember just how much the Spaniard will be helping the young Brit’s development. Tensions between the pair may seem huge, but the Finn said: “Many people forget it but I’m sure he has learned a lot from Fernando. He has always been able to compare his car’s data to Fernando’s - when you compare your data to Fernando’s you know the benchmark is really high.

“If you see you are losing somewhere and if you are able to improve your driving to his standards and your lap times to his lap times, you are always going to be up the front. He is one of the best drivers there. I think it has helped Lewis working with him, learning from him. He has taken full advantage of that.”

[artpogi]

It's final! FA will be back on Renault Team next season. He doesn't want to be with LH and the rest of McLaren team. It was on BBC six o'clock news this evening.

If he returns to Flavio then it will all be good for F1 and most importantly to the fans, you just imagine, LH, KR, FA fighting for the championship, throw in Massa and those fast newbies like Kubica, Vettel, Rosberg and Heidfeld, it will be interesting.

[empy]

And sorry to disagree as to his star being tarnished. What exactly did he do that tarnished his star? (or reputation). I dont see the FIA blaming Alonso for what happened to Mclaren. Even Ferrari is not blaming Alonso.

in my opinion, it was him turning into the most irritating and whiny sports personality this side of Mark Cuban that tarnished his reputation...at least in my eyes.

[valskie01]

i think it is better for FA to leave mclaren. the honesty and integrity of the whole mclaren team has already been tainted. It doesnt matter and useless whether LH or FA be the world champion because of the scandal.

[fourtheboys96]

ok FA a whiner (like a lot of you said)

LH getting some air in his head (like what i said)

if i may add. i think the root of this problem is ron dennis. i dont think alonso knew beforehand that he and hamilton will have equal billing in maclaren. as what flavio?? said today, FA would not have joined maclaren if he knew the setting would be like this.

ron dennis should learn his lesson. it is impossible to have two kings in one throne. now that Lh is performing really well, i think theres no use in retaining alonso. it will just cause further problems.

[CVT]

I am not taking anything away from LH. In fact I am rooting for the rookie this year as he is writing history as we speak. I just want to be very clear about this....

However, looking at it objectively from the sidelines, I think that there is some degree of logic and truth to what HK is saying here. (Because our whiner is also a great driver )......

(And of course, the scandal is another element in this story...)...

4000:play_ball:



FROM: http://www.7days.ae

Heikki Kovalainen, who finished runner-up to Hamilton in Fuji as Alonso crashed out, has urged people to remember just how much the Spaniard will be helping the young Brit’s development. Tensions between the pair may seem huge, but the Finn said: “Many people forget it but I’m sure he has learned a lot from Fernando. He has always been able to compare his car’s data to Fernando’s - when you compare your data to Fernando’s you know the benchmark is really high.

“If you see you are losing somewhere and if you are able to improve your driving to his standards and your lap times to his lap times, you are always going to be up the front. He is one of the best drivers there. I think it has helped Lewis working with him, learning from him. He has taken full advantage of that.”

[Horsepower]

Eto na...... from BBC

Hamilton wants Alonso out of team

[SIZE=2]

The idea of Alonso and Hamilton as team-mates seems untenable

Lewis Hamilton has said he does not think he and Fernando Alonso can continue together at McLaren next year. [/SIZE] [SIZE=2]The 22-year-old said he would rather the Spaniard left the team even if it meant Alonso ending up at Ferrari. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"I mean, if the team want to keep him, they keep him, but I'm here as long as they want me," said Hamilton, speaking before winning the Japanese Grand Prix. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"I don't know who else would slip in here, but I'd much rather it were Fernando at Ferrari and me at McLaren." [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]But the notion of Alonso moving to Ferrari has been quickly dispelled by the Italian team's manager Jean Todt. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"Zero percent," was Todt's response when asked about the chances of such a prospect. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"We have two fantastic drivers in Kimi (Raikkonen) and Felipe (Massa). We are very happy with them and they are under contract. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"I would respect a contract for a guy cleaning the floor, so you can imagine that I will respect a contract with them. If we have a contract, we respect it."
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]The relationship between Hamilton and Alonso has reached an all-time low after a weekend in which the Briton has lost no opportunity to criticise the double world champion. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Hamilton, whose victory puts him 12 points clear of Alonso with only 20 still available, said on Friday that he believed the team supported him more, and that he had been forced to revise his opinion of his team-mate in the light of recent events. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Alonso's relationship with McLaren team boss Ron Dennis has broken down after a series of disagreements during the year. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]It reached a low point during a row at the Hungarian Grand Prix in August over Alonso's status in the team. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Alonso threatened during the row to reveal incriminating e-mail evidence about McLaren's involvement in the spy row that has dominated the sport this summer to the sport's governing body, the FIA. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]He quickly apologised and withdrew the threat, but not before Dennis had telephoned FIA president Max Mosley to tell him of the conversation. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]It ultimately led to McLaren being thrown out of this year's constructors' championship and fined £49.2m for having confidential Ferrari technical information in their possession. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]And Hamilton has turned up the pressure on McLaren to tear up Alonso's contract, which still has two years to run, by saying he sees a long-term future at the team. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]"This season has helped reconfirm in my mind where I want to be, where I want to see out my career, and that is here," he said. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"I'm really happy and comfortable here. So long as they want me, there's no reason to move anywhere else." [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Alonso said on Friday he saw no reason not to stay at McLaren next season. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]But Dennis increased speculation about the 26-year-old's future when he said on Saturday that Alonso's future would be discussed at the end of the season. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"If there are any changes they will only be discussed after the last Grand Prix," the 60-year-old said. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"There is at this stage nobody engaged in any dialogue whatsoever." [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]

Alonso said on Friday: "For next year I have a contract with this team and I don't see any problem." [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]But Dennis refused to be drawn into talk about how the situation will develop and on Hamilton's assertion that Alonso needed to show more loyalty to the team. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"I've got a clear objective at the moment and nothing will deviate away from that, which is to focus on the balance of this year's season and races and then turn our attention to next year," Dennis said. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"All the issues of relationships and who said what and did what is immaterial. I'm not going to waste any of my energy on it and nor is any other member of the team. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]"We've got a competitive tension within the team and what would you expect? But that's where it ends." [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Dennis described Alonso as a "remarkable recluse for a driver" at a hearing earlier this month into the recent spy saga hearing and claimed that he had not been on speaking terms with the Spaniard since the beginning of August. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=2]Alonso said in Japan that the difficulties between him and Dennis had been exaggerated by the media, and that the two men were engaging in "small talk". [/SIZE]

[ocanursjr]

FA can't team up with KR, the highest paid F1 driver this season. It's final yesterday, Renault Team is going to buy back his contract from the McLaren. So, It's time for FA to bugger off and he's back with Flavio. I'm not a big fan of FA, I still remember when he crashed last 2004 at Brazilian GP. He won the said GP. And that's the start of FA career. I would like to see 3 different driver contesting next season. And of course, I like KR to win next year. KR losses to MS during the 2003 season. He losses again to FA last 2005 despite winning 7 GP. Sad, isn't it!

[bbt]

It's final yesterday, Renault Team is going to buy back his contract from the McLaren. So, It's time for FA to bugger off and he's back with Flavio.

where'd you hear that? can't find anything on the net...

[ocanursjr]

where'd you hear that? can't find anything on the net...

Right! FA is back with Flavio. More than 3 months ago since I heard this news at BBC One or BBC News 24 and local tabliod here in the UK. Now, it isn't a speculation, it's a fact.