Fernando Alonso admits he was ‘wasting time’ in F1 before taking two-year break from the sport

Published

4th June 2021

FERNANDO ALONSO has admitted that he quit Formula 1 almost three years ago because he felt he was ‘wasting my time’.

The Spaniard is back on the grid after a two-year break since he walked out of McLaren in 2018.

Fernando Alonso has claimed he was wasting his time before taking a break from F1

He is the second-oldest driver on the grid, behind Kimi Raikkonen, 41, and a full 19-years older than AlpaTauri’s rookie driver, Yuki Tsunoda.

The two-time world champion revealed he’s not feeling old earlier this year but has now admitted it was necessary to stop when he did.

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The Alpine driver said: “It was necessary to stop.

“I had been racing in Formula 1 for 18 seasons in a row without stopping, and staying fully dedicated had become too difficult.

“Besides, I had other challenges to do – I needed to do them.

“I was even feeling like I was wasting my time in Formula 1, but now I have come back happier. Now I am free to have fun every weekend.”

Ahead of this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Alonso claimed that that he is enjoying his comeback more than he expected.

He added: “In terms of happiness or how I feel coming back, it’s better than I expected, honestly.

“I’m enjoying every weekend so much, enjoying driving so much.

“Even the weekends where we don’t have racing, I miss the grand prix.

“So now that we have three races, France and two [in] Austria, I will enjoy because I like the back-to-back.”

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