Alonso would like to end his racing career with Hamilton

Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton found themselves together for only one year in Formula 1 in the same team, at McLaren in 2007.

The double world champion landed in Woking after his two titles with Renault F1 and began a collaboration with a beginner, a young Briton with long teeth. It didn’t go well, largely through the fault of Ron Dennis and his management.

So does the Spaniard regret not having been able to run longer with Hamilton at his side?

“It’s hard to say, the paths chosen are ultimately so different. Ideally we would like to compete with all the drivers in our life! But it would be nice to end our careers together with Lewis, I would love that, “ says Alonso.

“We had a difficult season together at McLaren, but we respected what the other was doing on the track and we still do.

“The situation that season was not handled well by our bosses. We were young. We were immature. We were what we are not now, and we needed help from the management that we didn’t have.”

“I couldn’t go on with McLaren. They were a team with eyes totally on one side of the garage. As Ron said after the penultimate race in China ‘Our race is not with [Felipe] Massa, she’s with Fernando. When your team says that, you can’t continue. But you learn in a career.”

“Now we consider each other a talented driver and one of the toughest competitors we have ever encountered.”

Alonso evokes a “goodwill” among themselves in the paddock but “we don’t go on vacation together”.

So how does he imagine an end to his career with Hamilton by his side?

“Certainly not in F1, it’s very unlikely. But maybe if he wants to drive in Endurance one day, there could be a possible joint project.”