What does he mean by that? Fernando Alonso hints at “further surprises”

Ahead of the race weekend in Sepang, what so many fans had been hoping for was officially confirmed: Fernando Alonso will remain in Formula 1 in 2027. The Spaniard has extended his contract with Aston Martin by a further year – following contract negotiations that lasted just five minutes, as he revealed.

Ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, which is being held in Malaysia this year as a one-off, Alonso spoke at length about motivation – and hinted that, in addition to his contract extension in Formula 1, there might be something else on the cards soon.

Alonso also wants to compete in other series

Alonso took a break from Formula 1 in 2019 and 2020, competing in other series and categories during that time, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Dakar Rally. He had also planned to compete in the Indy 500 again. Alonso revealed that this break gave him a great deal of motivation for Formula 1: “I needed to take a break, step away from Formula 1, get to know other series and try out various things that had been on my mind for a long time, always out of sheer curiosity. And I really enjoyed experiencing all of that, discovering new forms of motorsport, learning from the specialists in each series and becoming a more versatile driver. That was very important. And I still find it appealing. I don’t know when I’ll do it, but I will repeat these experiences.”

Alonso: “I love a challenge. My life revolves around racing cars. My strength lay in adapting to different cars and different rules – the V10, the V8, the V6, Bridgestone, Michelin, Pirelli, KERS, hybrid systems, ground-effect cars and all those things – as well as different racing series: prototypes, Indy, Dakar… And I’m trying to make use of that strength and perhaps put into practice things from the past that were possible in the 80s, 60s or 90s. Today, I don’t think anyone will try to do certain things anymore.” In other words, competing in different series at the same time. There is one exception in the current field: Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing).

A surprise? Alonso wants to explore the limits of what’s possible

Alonso: “Max is the only one trying his hand at GT racing. I’ve tried it in the past and will continue to do so.” And then he suddenly hinted: “Perhaps there will be more surprises in the coming weeks … There are things that people probably consider impossible, but I want to explore the limits of what’s possible.” So will there soon be an announcement that Alonso will be competing in an endurance race next year?

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The three major 24-hour races – Le Mans, the Nürburgring and Spa – do not clash with any Formula 1 race weekends in 2027. It would therefore be possible to take part between two F1 races. Aston Martin, for example, will be competing at Le Mans with the Valkyrie.

Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing) had already announced that he would once again be competing in the 24-hour race on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2027, as well as the 24 Hours of Spa. Incidentally, between the two Formula 1 triple-headers (i.e. after Singapore in two weeks’ time), the Dutchman will also be competing in the GT World Challenge at Portimão for his own team, Verstappen Racing, which is short of two drivers for the weekend (as the WEC is taking place in Barcelona at the same time). Perhaps Verstappen won’t be the only one with side projects for much longer.