Alonso regrets the old generation of drivers, “more authentic” than current drivers

The springs parade, the pilots too, but Fernando Alonso is still there. Since 2001, the Spaniard has been present on the grid – with the exception of the 2002, 2019 and 2020 seasons – and has known dozens of drivers throughout his 23-year career in Formula 1.

Personalized Schumacher, Montoya and Raïkkönen in his early days until the Verstappen, Norris and Russell today, the veteran of 42 brushes (43 at the end of July) has crossed the eras, the eras (V10, V8, V6 hybrid) and the generations. To the point of currently racing against drivers almost twice his age: Oscar piastri, born in 2001 was born the same year that the Asturian Bull debuted in F1! Not to mention the future pilot Haas Ollie Bearman, born in 2005, the year of the Spaniard's first title!

Alonso, the old man

With such a bottle, Fernando Alonso has many points of comparison between each period in which he raced in Formula 1. Unsurprisingly, the native of Oviedo turns out to be nostalgic for the times of his early years, especially regarding the drivers of the older generation.

“There are definitely differences. I think the older generation was a little more authentic, confided the double world champion in an interview with the Financial Times. They had a different character, a different approach to racing and life. They were very tough competitors. Today, I would say they are very talented – perhaps more than before thanks to all the preparation, academies, simulator work, technology and data they have to improve and learn quickly . They arrive in F1 better prepared. »

“But off the track or without the helmet, maybe they're a bit the same and more timid in the way they approach things. They have people speaking for them, for management, for the media, for fitness. They are well prepared, but they may have lost a little of their personality. »

Is Fernando Alonso the victim of a generational shock with young shoots who are more formatted and more “connected” via social networks? Would the one who participates in his 2024st season in Formula 21 in 1 be the last of the Mohicans, with free speech and strong character? If the new generation is certainly less divisive than the previous ones, it would be a lie to say that some – like Max Verstappen – lack personality…

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