Craig Hampson's contribution to McLaren SP, a key element according to Alonso

Convincing debut in 2017 with McLaren and Andretti, with a fifth place in qualifying and a race spent at the forefront before giving up, then a monumental slap last year with a McLaren – Carlin association which did not allow the Spaniard to qualify for the race.

History Fernando Alonso at the Indianapolis 500, after two participations, could not be more up and down. Always eager to pin the Triple Crown to his list of achievements, the double world champion F1 will reunite with McLaren on May 24 for the 2020 edition of the legendary event IndyCar, but in a context still different from his first two races in Indiana.

After the alliance sealed with the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports team, McLaren will offer an additional DW12 – Chevrolet to Alonso, in addition to the two starters Oliver Askew and Pat O’Ward. A choice which can be considered unexpected for Alonso, who admits that the Andretti option remained alive for a long time.

« At one point, I was more focused on the Andretti project, confessed the Iberian pilot in a conference call yesterday. After the Dakar, I think the McLaren team had reinforcements, with new people in the team, and I don't know, I turned a little more towards this project.

JI also know that Chevrolet has won the last two races (Will Power and simon pagenaud with Team Penske). I raced with Chevy last year there, and I know for the top of the standings they might have a slight advantage, so that was something to consider as well. »

Alonso also highlights “his loyalty to McLaren”, after the F1 adventure, which ended without success.

The support of a size

Fernando Alonso also does not hide that the reinforcements arriving within McLaren SP with a view to the 2020 campaign largely contributed to his choice. The first of them: Craig Hampson. The engineer is a leading authority in IndyCar, having notably supported Sébastien Bourdais during his reign in Champ Car.

Hampson has over a 25-year career, 30 victories in the discipline, four Champ Car titles and two Indy 500 victories. An experience that weighed heavily in the balance.

“Everyone told me that Craig Hampson was the right guy to work with, with so much experience, and who made the difference in many races and championships over the last two decades in IndyCar, recognizes Alonso.

It's obviously very interesting to work with these kinds of people who make a difference, and you can also learn a lot from the point of view of the driver, the team and the engineers. »

How to avoid the bitter failure of 2019? We will have to wait for the first runs, but Alonso intends to learn all the lessons from the previous edition.

“I was 100% sure I would come back. I think after finishing the world championship WEC, I made it very clear, I think from September, October, November, that the biggest priority for 2020 was Indy 500.

I don't know if I'm going to race again in 2021 because I don't know what the plans will be for 2021, but if I'm free that month I'll still look to come. Last year, yes, we failed. Last year we were not ready for the challenge.

But sport is full of these examples. You have to fail many times to learn and maybe succeed once in life. For every success, there are hundreds of failures.

Last year it was difficult for everyone, but maybe it was a necessity to get better and have a chance this year. You know, everything happens for a reason, and I'm sure last year was a good learning experience. »

Other races in sight?

If for the moment, only the 500 miles are on the menu for the former pilot Ferrari et Renault, Alonso could line up for other events to better prepare for the very special meeting of the Indy 500, and to reaccustom himself to driving the DW12 single-seaters, which this year will feature the famous Aeroscreen of Red Bull Technology. The Indianapolis Grand Prix (May 9) could be it.

« There are possibilities, simply specifies the Spaniard. You know, I think it's not 100% up to me. As I said before, I think that more testing, more simulator, more racing, whatever I do before Indy 500, it can only be beneficial for my preparation because I would like to be a little more active until 'to the race. »