Fernando Alonso has signed a multi-year contract extension to stay with Aston Martin’s Formula 1 team until at least the end of the 2026 season.
The 42-year-old joined Aston Martin in 2023 and started in remarkable fashion with six podiums in the opening eight races of last season. After finishing the year fourth in the drivers’ championship, Alonso was linked with the vacancy at Mercedes earlier this year but has opted to both continue racing deep into his 40s as well as remaining with Aston Martin.
“It was easy,” Alonso said of the decision. “I think it didn’t change much from when we spoke in February on the car launch. I needed a few races or few weeks to really think about myself, if I was ready to commit for more years in Formula 1, because the calendars are just a little bit more intense now, the car as well, the commitments.
“My love for Formula 1 and my love for Aston Martin didn’t change, but I just wanted this time to make the decision and the commitment. Formula 1 takes all your time, all your energy. You have to give up basically everything in life to keep racing, and I wanted just to speak with myself if I was ready to do so.
“Once I took the decision — I think it was after Australia, something like that — I sat with Aston, which again is exactly the same as what I said in February, that would be my first priority, and it was not too difficult. We both wanted the same. I wanted to keep racing with Aston Martin, Aston Martin also wanted to keep me on the seat. When two parties want something, at one point you reach an agreement.
“So I’m extremely excited to keep racing and keep racing with this team, at which I feel at home. It was also a sense of loyalty that I wanted to express to my team. One year and a half ago, we started together and we achieved so many things — some of them probably unprecedented in Formula 1 to reach so many highs in such a short period of time. I felt this is just the beginning of the journey. It could not be the end of the journey for me and Aston Martin.