Checo Pérez: “Fernando Alonso is different. We still see him in F1 until he is 60 years old”
‘Checo’ Pérez, Cadillac driver in F1highlighted the capacity of Fernando Alonso to maintain his maximum driving level at 45 years old, always being able to get the most out of each car he drives, as he did last Sunday in Zandvoortgoing from 18th to 9th with great tire management at the wheel of his renewed Aston Martin.
The Mexican, in statements on the official Formula 1 podcast, Beyond The Grid, took off his hat to Fernando who in Zandvoort achieved a milestone that had not been repeated for five decades, that of scoring points in F1 at the age of 45, something that only three legends have achieved in the history of F1.
“When you’re young, all you think about is, ‘What’s next? How are you going to ride better? What different techniques can you use?’ and that kind of stuff. But as you get older, every driver is different. Some drivers feel it in their late 20s, others in their mid-30s, others in their mid-40s. Fernando is 45.”Pérez highlighted at the beginning of his reflection.
“We still see Fernando Alonso until he is 60”added the pilot from Guadalajara.
“I think Fernando is different. Fernando still has that engine inside. You can see it. Whenever there is an opportunity, whenever there is something that he can take advantage of, he still has it. You can see it”said a ‘Czech’ who referred to something that can happen to every veteran driver: having less and less desire to continue doing everything that F1 requires to be at his best, something that has not happened to Fernando Alonso in recent years despite driving cars that have not been up to his standard.
“I think it is the desire to do things in Formula 1. Once they lose, everything else follows”he pointed out.
We must remember that in the last F1 Barcelona-Catalunya GP, ‘Checo’ already said that Fernando Alonso “is an inspiration for everyone” for what he continued to do in F1.
“I respect him a lot, you see him fighting for 18th and He is just as motivated as if he were fighting for the World Cup and it is something that makes you say: ‘Look, someone who has won everything and is still this motivated at 44.’‘, but no, I don’t see myself in Formula 1 for 8 more years. I returned because I have pending things to do, but I also want to do many other things, I want to close my career well here in Formula 1 and dedicate myself to other things outside of sport,” Pérez said at that time.
Alonso: “Age doesn’t matter”
Fernando Alonso already referred to his age before the Netherlands GP, last Thursday, when he was asked about his future in F1 and the possibility of leaving this year.
“Age is not a problem. We raced in Qatar, I think it was 2023, and everyone was half dead in the parc fermewhile I was perfectly fine, doing the interviews in the television area.
And he hinted that for him, this F1 does not mean reaching the limit of his physical and mental effort. “This is a different animal. There is someone who is using 100% of his brain and physical capacity to drive the car, and maybe Max Verstappen is using 10%, because he is on another level. So it depends. Age is not a problem. It’s simply the motivation, the fun and what’s left to achieve.”pointed out his future, making it clear that he has to make the decision based on the fun he wants for 2027 and based on the needs of Aston Martin.
