‘I expect the same from the team’: Fernando Alonso fires Aston Martin warning

Fernando Alonso will race for Aston Martin this season following two up-and-down seasons with Alpine.

The F1 world was slight confused over last season’s summer break, as it was announced that Fernando Alonso would depart high-flying Alpine at the end of the year to join the struggling Aston Martin.

What was perhaps even more surprising about the move is that at the age of 41, Alonso signed a multi-year contract with Aston Martin, allowing him to continue to push the boundaries of his performance to the limit.

Since joining the team, the Spaniard has boldly claimed that Aston Martin could be capable of challenging for world championships within a couple of season, such is the potential that he sees in the team and its staff.

These lofty ambitions have led some fans to believe that there could be a breakdown in relationship between Alonso and Aston Martin should they not be able to live up to his ambitions, similar to how his spell with McLaren ended.

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The 41-year-old has now fired a warning to his team, claiming that he would not have signed if he didn’t believe that there was a chance of him winning another title.

“No, I think I will not accept that and I will not continue if I don’t believe that we can have a chance,” he said.

“I don’t know if it’s a one percent chance or ten percent, but I will only continue because I believe that we will have a chance.

“Next year to close the gap that Aston Martin has I think it’s unrealistic, but we need to put the foundation we need, to put the baseline to future cars and to work better than the people around us.

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“This is a very competitive environment, so to become a champion you need to deliver something special. I’m ready to deliver something special from my side and I expect the same from the team.”

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack has addressed the rumours that Alonso’s relationship with the team could turn toxic, claiming that they best way to keep his new driver happy is to be open and honest with him about the team’s realistic expectations and capabilities.

Team owner Lawrence Stroll has also been very optimistic about the future of Aston Martin, claiming that their recruitment and new factory will play a key role in the team becoming title challengers in the future.