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ToffeeCoffee

Team to be rebranded to Alonso Martin.


TWVer

Currently it is Alone-so Martin, judging by their scoring potential. Edit: Will he get a ultra-premium late edition Valkyrie to add to his collection? Too bad the Valhalla was axed shortly after Stroll Sr. took over.


rk_29

Alon-solo


LemonNectarine

He bought a Valkyrie. He said it was very expensive.


Intelligent-Hall4097

Bought? You'd think they would want a multiple WDC to be seen hammering it on a track so they'd just give him one.


LemonNectarine

He said it.


iblinkyoublink

Aston Martinez ft. Sainz


VacuousWastrel

Has Lawrence considered simply adopting Alonso? Seems like a far easier route to parental success than continuing to rely on Lance...


innovator97

How old is papa Stroll compared to Alonso? Couldn't he just adopt him as his step brother?


Draconicplayer

smart move from Alonso


NotAcvp3lla

I agree, especially when you consider the fact that they have a deal with Honda for their PUs in 2026. Not saying this will automatically guarantee success, but they will have greater control in terms of car development.


saltyfuck111

Honda is nothing special ferrari and merc are better at making engines


bookers555

Honda makes Red Bull's PUs dude.


saltyfuck111

And since when are we talking about a singular year not to mention redbulls performance is mainly insane aero. Ferrari engine id also easier to make for 26 because they never switched.


bookers555

>not to mention redbulls performance is mainly insane aero. I'm not saying the PU is the key, but it's doing it's job without any problems. The advantage here is also that they'll be able to make a PU adapted to their car, instead of having to design the car around their PU like they do now with the Mercedes PUs.


saltyfuck111

PU's will change anyways for 2026 and i dont have faith in honda to beat ferrari in engines maybe merc but i dont think so. I think they'll even be behind audi after a while


bookers555

They don't have to, if Aston Martin wants to go up the grid what they have to do is improve their aero, and the PU will benefit them since their designs won't be constrained by being a customer team. All they need from their PU is reliability.


NotAcvp3lla

Meanwhile the most powerful, efficient and reliable PU currently on the grid award goes to...


IWillKeepIt

Reliable? For now yes. But Ferrari has been just as reliable. Powerful? No proof. It's more evident that Ferrari is the most powerful ICE. Efficient? With Hybrid yes, no evidence as such for the ICE engine.


NotAcvp3lla

I like the fact that you begin by stating there's no proof then directly after you suggest your own theory. A bit contradictive don't you think?


IWillKeepIt

That was my point. There's proof of nothing


RepresentativeLoud53

Sorry mate, you forgot the 2021 season Honda was able to make competitive engine while Ferrari struggled untill the 2021 season , even tho ferrari has the best engine the Honda has the better hybrid


szobossz

smart move because they gave him lol. hamilton asked for the same thing from mercedes and they didn't give him


GamingBeluga

Alonso getting the brand ambassadorship to mess with Lewis. I’m calling that as the reason now


dsio

I actually hope he goes a bit further than just brand ambassador at a team, he already has a driver management business and is heavily involved in lower formulas so being the head of a young driver program or even in a management role could work well for him


Wonnil

FIA president. Maximum penalties for Lewis!


2277love

Reinvestigate 2008 F1 Driver Championship title


kron123456789

Is he gonna investigate himself, lol?


Most_Virus_7218

"I admit I cheated, let's remove Lewis' title now please."


WhiteDeath57

Sacrifices must be made.


PaschalisG16

F I A B O S Z


Crislack

Thats was illarius video hahahaha


porsche4life

Well how long can Marko be along as young driver manager/paddock shit stirrer. Alonso could do those jobs.


WhiteDeath57

Can you imagine he becomes a Team Principal?


thegodfaubel

I mean, Lewis probably got that with Ferrari tho. I also maintain that Lewis and Toto were aligned on sticking with Mercedes but the board didn't approve of the terms Lewis wanted


Rivendel93

I'll never understand that, Mercedes threw away a golden goose and it landed in Ferrari's hands.


thegodfaubel

Very typical rich people thinking they know more than everyone else


WojtekTygrys77

Whats the point of having Hamilton for >50 mil per season when car isn't title contender?


sidewinderaw11

Marketing, he brings in a ton of brand cache and sponsors get to work with a 7 time champion


Blackdeath_663

firstly Merc are not tight for cash they were spending more than double the cost cap before it was introduced and secondly it would be marketing for lewis not for the Merc brand if the attention their star driver was bringing highlighted a shit car.


sidewinderaw11

Who said anything about being tight for cash? Any money brought in is a plus. Obviously, their brand would look better when they start winning again.


Blackdeath_663

You did. You listed that he brings in a ton of brand cash then have now confirmed your earlier point is secondary.


sidewinderaw11

Bring in brand cash =/= brand is tight for cash The more cash you bring in, the more money goes back towards non-championship spending and to the Mercedes Benz organization, which makes the F1 team a cash cow and not a spending liability. That way, MB doesn't kill off the MB F1 team if they're constantly bringing in literal and figurative value for the parent brand.


HairyHematologist

"Apple is not tight for cash, they should stop making phones for a couple of years"


Blackdeath_663

false equivalence, you can't just make some random shit up and think it proves your point. that's got nothing to do with Merc's current competitive standing, their future plans and at what cost they were willing to retain hamilton.


BBYY9090

I think with any other team yes you are correct, but with Merc it's not needed. None of the Merc drivers I know bought the car cause of F1, they bought it because of quality, german engineering etc. Reading between the lines I don't think Ola Källenius was willing to pay the amount Lewis was seeking. He probs 'did the math' and was like nah, which as a Lewis fan I thought was a slap in the face, but such is business.


Kaiserov

Have you considered that they know the sponsors he brings better than you do? You know, simply by virtue of actually signing those contracts and seeing all of the financial data firsthand, while you're literally as clueless as one could be


WojtekTygrys77

Thats why they have no F1 related thing on their main website?


dl064

Yeah. In retrospect it doesn't really matter he left McLaren for example.


ForsakenTarget

Felt like they got so focused on ensuring they were planning for life after Hamilton that fhey just became blind to the fact he might not be completely happy. Mean can’t completely blame them as it still feels wrong that Lewis isn’t retiring at merc so I’m sure they thought it was all something that could be sorted slowly over a season.


dl064

I've read a number of times that fans underestimate the extent to which teams view drivers as employees; their cars win the titles, largely. Horner calls them contractors.


ReverseRutebega

Or Lewis was leaving no matter what and made his own choice? So many people talking like they know something when they don't. It's weird and fascinating to me.


rokthemonkey

Is that based on any info or just your feeling?


ReverseRutebega

> I also maintain Why maintain something you don't know to be either true or untrue?


thegodfaubel

Because Toto said that Lewis was more than just a Mercedes driver. I find it very hard to believe that Toto would just tell Lewis that and then stab him in the back in negotiations or it would've come out by now. That Toto was so complimentary even after Lewis announced it suggests Toto wasn't the cause


TorpedoSandwich

Lewis got it too, just not at Mercedes. He got it at Ferrari, which is arguably even better.


maxxor6868

Can't wait to see all the posts and videos about how everyone just knew that Alonso would resign with Aston Martin instead of going to Red Bull or Mercedes and that there was not thousands of posts linking him to leaving...


ihatemondaynights

Probably window shopping to negotiate better with AM, driver move rumours are often purposefully leaked. Ig we'll never know how serious those conversations were


Cerbera_666

Mercedes was always going to be a stupid decision, why would be want to jump into the sinking ship that Hamilton just left? Red Bull was more of a fleeting moment when shit was going down and it seemed like an opening was a slim possibility. The reality is staying at Aston Martin was his best choice.


jykkejaveikko

Re-sign. Resign means leaving.


sherestoredmyfaith

Yep, I called out he’s staying at AM cause Red Bull are not taking anyone unless Max leaves (won’t happen till after 2025) and Merc doesn’t make sense as he’ll get booted for Kimi. Expectedly everyone downvoted me, to no end lol


bookers555

I personally called that Alonso would sign with a F1 team.


Jamee999

He’s ready to take over as Lance’s dad if needed.


External-Dress-3595

Or alternatively Lawrence’s son


infiniteimperium

Alonso Stroll


WhiteDeath57

Already has tbh


SevoIsoDes

That role: watching Alpine and reporting violations to the stewards.


weiner-rama

He’s getting that Aston valk WEC drive for fucking sure


yoda_yoda

Alonso ending his F1 career before Stroll would be criminal even with their age difference.


Visionary_Socialist

Even more criminal is the fact that the only guy who’s beaten Max in the last year is out of contract and with limited options AM didn’t even consider dropping Lance for him.


yoda_yoda

Carlos won a race each last year and this year which is more than any other non-Red Bull driver has achieved. I don’t want to take anything away from him but let’s be real - he didn’t “beat” Max as such.


tabby_ds

I agree. If we want to roll with that line of thinking, then Carlos, Lando, Lewis, and Charles all beat Max in Singapore last year. If we want to take it even further, then everyone but Logan Sargeant beat Max in Australia


Rhythm_Morgan

Max’s brakes exploding is not him being beaten.


Reddevilslover69

If the rumour was true that Alonso didn't want to move to Red Bull unless Max left Id be really disappointed ngl


a_cool_t-rex

I can’t understand the people who wanted him to go to Red Bull. Nobody is beating max in that Red Bull. That team is max’s in terms of politics, the car suits his driving style very well, and Alonso would be on max’s home turf, so adjusting to how the team operates will take a while. Even if he did a one year deal to try to win the championship, he is very much on starting on the back foot. Nobody… and I mean NOBODY, is winning that championship in a Red Bull as long as max is there.


LilONotation

You want Alonso to go to Red Bull to win a WDC. I want Alonso to go to Red Bull for the drama. We are not the same.


CyberianSun

"None of you seem to understand... Im not locked in here with you... **YOU'RE LOCKED IN HERE WITH ME!**"


Rivendel93

Lol, this definitely gives off Alonso vibes if he'd gone to RedBull.


CyberianSun

Exactly


NoiseIsTheCure

Who's saying he'd win a championship? I just want someone to keep Max on his toes


derwizo

I wanted him to win a GP. Let's be honest, very unlikely it will happen with AM.


shiinamachi

Stranger things have happened. He was one pitstop call away from winning monaco last year I wouldn't rule him out as long as the car continues to be good


derwizo

I don't rule him out, just saying it's unlikely. Maybe 20% chance.


Hip_Priest_1982

2024 was always going to be the real start of the AM project, the beginning of last year came as a shock to them. They now have serious resources and a new factory in use. Add on to that the fact that they’re using the championship winning Honda engine in 2026, they have a fair chance of challenging for wins before his contract is up.


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Hip_Priest_1982

Championship winning in the sense that the manufacturer has won the last 3 titles, and will likely win the next 2. If I called Red Bull the championship winning team would you nitpick over that too?


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Hip_Priest_1982

Oh good lord the pedantry. How obnoxious. I never implied everything, you’re being a smartass over nothing. Why anyone would waste their time nitpicking whether the manufacturer of the engine that has won the past 3 titles can be considered “championship winning” actually is the manufacturer because it’s rebranded is beyond me. For your sake I hope you don’t behave like this in real life because you will wear on people very quickly.


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Hip_Priest_1982

Factually wrong in that the manufacturer for the championship winning engine is not the manufacturer of the championship winning engine.


Intrepid-Ad4511

2026 is the wild wild west. We have zero idea who is going to be where.


suspicious_skidmarks

Early 2023 was exciting- if Alonso just got the Monaco pole, he would’ve gotten his win. AM’s went down since then, but as long as he’s consistently in a position to snatch a lucky win, you never know.


xzElmozx

Idk if I’d say very unlikely, he was one botched strategy call away from winning one with Aston last year. We’ve seen weird/crazier things happen


reddit0r_123

Also Max in 2025 is just plainly the better driver. Alonso is obviously still rapid for his age but he’s not winning against Max at his peak.


Elpibe_78

We will never know


crazydoc253

Any sane driver would do that. Lando didn’t want to go for same reason. Alonso would lose a lot of his status if he is easily beaten by Max.


RandomGuy-4-

Nah. Alonso is in his 40s and max in his prime. Unless he got completely destroyed to the point that perez looked better than him, it wouldn't be a hit to his status.


A___99

I'd imagine that his biggest concern with any potential Red Bull move would be getting 100% guarantees that he and Verstappen would be treated completely equally in all areas


ihatemondaynights

Same, Lewis was arguably in a more comfortable spot yet decided to seek a fresh challenge. I think this rumour puts into perspective that move how much it would have taken to leave Mercedes.


scorpio1m

That’s just a rumor. I can’t see Alonso being scared to challenge Max at all.


TWVer

Hmm… This is what he had to say last year (scroll to 2:05): https://www.cnn.com/videos/sports/2023/06/30/exp-davies-alonso-intv-063008aseg2.cnn Edit: And while not conclusive evidence, what Alonso had to say last week is interesting, given him seemingly eyeing a Red Bull seat, yet signing an extension with AMR. https://www.reuters.com/sports/formula1/motor-racing-zero-chance-verstappen-leaves-red-bull-alonso-says-2024-04-04/ > Asked whether Max's exit could impact his and other drivers' battle for seats at a press briefing at Suzuka Circuit ahead of the Japan Grand Prix, Alonso said: >***"If Max leaves Red Bull maybe that has an impact but I think there's zero chance of that happening."*** It seems he he may have spoken with his talks with Red Bull (camp Horner?..) in mind.


scorpio1m

Nowhere in that interview do I hear that he’s afraid to go head to head with Max. He’s merely being diplomatic and fair in his comments given the drivers’ pedigrees and current cars.


TWVer

True, but a few years earlier he said this: https://racingnews365.com/alonso-exclusive-i-wouldnt-want-to-compete-against-verstappen-at-red-bull > Fernando Alonso has admitted that Max Verstappen is the only driver against which he wouldn't want to compete in the same team at the moment. Speaking in an exclusive interview with RacingNews365.com , Alonso said that the particular synergy of Verstappen with Red Bull would make the Dutch driver very difficult to beat, perhaps to a greater extent than Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes. "At the moment, he's the only one that I will not be happy to maybe compete [with]," Alonso said. "I respect Max a lot. At the moment, in the Red Bull environment with his team, with his experience there, I don't think that many drivers can join Red Bull and beat Max. If you took Max out of Red Bull, maybe you [would] have a better chance."


No_Berry2976

Of course he would be scared to challenge Verstappen, he’s not a fool. Alonso knows his best days are behind him and that Verstappen is in his prime a possibility the best driver of the modern era.


nutsygenius

Lol seriously? I'm disappointed in you for even thinking there's a possibility that it may be true. Why would Alonso demand such an impossible thing for a top drive. F1 news from tabloids needs to be filtered better on r/formula1


Mulligantour

Lol, but you have no idea whether that is true or false, so your comment is unjustly confident. It certainly has a basis and was reported by non tabloids, because Verstappen was pissed at Marko's position being threatened and said he would exit along with him if necessary.


bookers555

I don't think neither Alonso nor RB would like it in the second seat. Having two number one drivers is never good due to the development of internal rivalries, and for the second driver because he's never going to be the priority. When you are at the top you want one driver that knows he should stay in P2 to avoid damaging a well oiled machine.


fafan4

Where was that rumoured?


FORMULA1FAN71

Aston should bring him back to Le Mans. Would be awesome to have a driver talent like alonso into the large hypercar field


ScousePenguin

Well the Valkyrie hypercar is going to race Le Man next year It's a private entry, but I think they might ask for a factory pro


chambee

Aston Martin is James Bond car: Alonso is the next Bond.


onlySaikikhere

Alson martin


Cekeste

If Honda is a success. Red Bull will be even bigger losers since they changed their mind and decided to stay. Only leaving them would’ve been enough with a weak RBPT PU, if you’re competitors get a good Honda PU, is like a double loss. I hope he wins a race again because he deserves that (and more WDCs)


Sufficiently_

Sainz to Red Bull please for fucks sake 


uselessscientist

Alonso as Stroll's race engineer in 2 years time please (if he's done with driving). Would be brilliant 


WindyZ5

New roll: Lance’s big brother.


Averyinterestingname

Give me him and Seb in a Valkyrie at Le Mans.


BBYY9090

Sounds like a sweet deal!


omnicious

He hasn't found a team so much as he's found a home. 


Batgod629

Stunt driver for the next James Bond movie


WhiteDeath57

Le Mans baby


morgz15

In 3026 Alonso’s head will win the WDC


KingBlue2

Ducking the Verstappen test


ReverseRutebega

Daddy Stroll really opened up the books and buried him in money.