Last summer, it seemed all but certain that Fernando Alonso would extend his contract with the high-flying Alpine team.
Sebastian Vettel’s shock retirement from F1 started a domino effect however, resulting in Fernando Alonso being tempted into a controversial move to Aston Martin to replace the German.
This move looked strange at the time, with Aston Martin finishing seventh in the constructors’ championship while Alpine finished in fourth.
It appears that the Spaniards decision has already been vindicated however, as Alonso scored his 99th podium in F1 on his Aston Martin debut, while his teammate Lance Stroll finished in P6, only 12 days after keyhole surgery for a wrist injury.
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Alpine on the other hand only managed to finish in P9 with Alonso’s replacement Pierre Gasly, while Esteban Ocon retired from the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Lance Stroll was unable to help himself for making a dig at Alonso’s former team after the race, butting into his teammate’s post-race interview in the media pen.
“Yes man! You’re happy no? You’re happy you’re not in Alpine, haha. Happy that you’re in the green car now,” joked the Canadian.
These comments may stem from the fact that Alonso’s relationship with Alpine ended on a sour note, with the Spaniard telling the media that he was counting down the days until he could leave the French team.
The 41-year-old had a number of clashes with his teammate Esteban Ocon and even accused the team of favouring the Frenchman after a number of engine failures.
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Alonso was forced to retire from six races during his final season with Alpine, leaving the Spaniard utterly fed up with his former employers.
Having already matched his podium count for Alpine in his first race with Aston Martin, Alonso will be over the moon with his decision to take a gamble on Lawrence Stroll’s team this season.
Many fans laughed at Alonso for claiming that Aston Martin are only a couple of seasons away from a title challenge but nobody is laughing now as the team look to be quicker than both Ferrari and Mercedes so far this year.