Will Alonso leave F1 ...

Looks to me like he is really enjoying himself at the Indy 500. He might decide to say stuff F1 and continue to enjoy the rawer experience of IndyCars. He is after all a real racer ...

Would be an amusing backfire with Zac Brown's strategy in keeping Alonso at McLaren F1
Pete

 

I don´'t believe he will go to Indy...and besides, it's too much fun to see his face everytime his engine breaks...

 

I see him staying in F1 and I think his profile has been raised by all this via Indy 500. He is very marketable and I hope he finds a better F1 drive.

 

+1

 

With all due respect, I think that, apart from Indy 500, the current Indy Car championship is too irrelevant for an ex-F1 champion. If he doesn´t win Indy 500 this time maybe he´ll go back for another try, but if he leaves F1 Ithink he´ll try Le Mans.

 

I think he will. He clearly wants the recognition of being the best driver, and more F1 titles are not likely to be in his future given the current teams.

Winning at Indy and LeMans, once, let alone multiple times would do more for that reputation than just F1.

Mario benefited from winning elsewhere and I would rate Alonso much higher than him.

 

Indy is a one race series, the championship is irrelevant, plus there is little money in it... he will always have a ride if he wants to just run in the Indy 500 every year.

 

No because the rest of the indycar schedule would be a slog. Fernando Alonso isn't going to be racing in Birmingham Alabama

 

Nope.

Alonso is enjoying the one race a year that matters. Then he's going back to Europe and race F1.

He wants to win Indy and LeMans in his career to go with this F1 world championships. I can't say I blame him.

 

Porsche and Toyota have ruled out Alonso for 2018 LeMans....that was on May 6th. Now that he brings viewership to the sport of Indy.....who knows? I know he is best buds with Mark Webber.

 

I think there is a 25% chance when Fernando reaches 38/39 years old. I know it's a different person, but Barrichello liked Indycar so much he wanted to do more years, but he just couldn't find the sponsorship.

 

+1

 

I think it would be a bad idea if Indy car looked like a retirement home for aging F1 stars.

Indy car needs to create its own stars like Nascar does. Otherwise sponsorship money for new drivers will dry up.

 

If he goes anywhere, he goes to the WEC. It won't be Indy.

 

He's not exactly the model team player, I can't picture Alonso sharing a car and setup with two other guys.

 

Well he is sharing currently with his 5 teammates at Andretti Autosport, so I guess it's not out of the question.

 

I think the problem with WEC is it's still a form of racing where the best car can dominate, whereas Indycar tends to be more driver focused 2016 had 7 different drivers win races, 2015 9 different drivers won.

 

I agree, the huge challenge today that wasn't the case in the peak of CART in the early/mid 90s was cigarette sponsorship. Marlboro, Hollywood, Players, Kool all freely threw money around, promoted their drivers and most importantly promoted the sport through their advertising. Now in the current climate many drivers in the sport have to bring with them money which isn't easy. The little sponsorship funds these relatively unknown drivers carry with them are just enough to "buy" a ride in Indycar with nothing left over to promote them or their team in additional advertising.

Of course there are positive signs and if anything Indycar is trending in the right direction. Good racing Indycar has, new car is coming next year which many believe is a much more attractive car, tv ratings have improved, management in place is much better than years past. But the money or lack there of is still the main issue to promote the sport and drivers of the future, so until things change, if they can get a big F1 star over here every 5 years or so I'll take it.

 

And he shared happily with Lewis until ...

Another myth that some have to hang on to, gee whiz.
Pete

 

Alonzo is an international player. He also will never make a fraction of the money in Indy that he will make in F1.

This "exercise" in Indy Car is designed to get him to Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull.

 

The problem for Indycar is it really has only 2 races that anyone cares about. And the second one is about to be run at the end of this month. Seriously -- who pays attention after that?

After Long Beach and the 500, sponsorship money dries up. Many Indy teams are one race teams and a lot of money disappears as soon at the checkered flag is waved at the brickyard.

No one cares who wins the Indy car championship. I couldn't tell you one driver for sure myself. It's only the 500 that matters. I can't see Alonso wishing he would win the Indy championship as one of his portfolio pieces.

 

Guys sharing data is not the same as having a compromised setup on your car because two others are also driving it.

 

He is not sharing his car with anyone, and can certainly get the settings that suit him without having to compromise with anyone else !!!

That's the thing with single-seater: you fine-tune the car to your taste !!

 

I know he's not sharing the car with anyone, it's the fact that in qualifying (and practice for that matter) the drivers (and engineers) know which setup everybody is running (this happens in F1 too as Lewis has run Nico's setups). It's pretty clear that in Indycar a driver will help the next teammate in line during qualifying by saying you need to change gear here or there is NW wind in this corner so you might want to run a specific line...etc. Ovals are unique in that respect. Fernando has admitted as such that they share more here than F1. Certainly once the green flag drops and more towards the end of the race, there are no friends.

 

Sharing info and setting up the cars are 2 different things.