F1 Rumors: Fernando Alonso's move to Aston Martin could be another flawed team choice for the Spaniard

If the recent F1Insider report is to be believed, then Fernando Alonso is in prime position to replace Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin next season. The Spaniard's contract at Alpine will expire at the end of this season. Sebastian Vettel, whose contract also expires at the end of this year, has been indecisive when it comes to committing to a future with his current team. Now, why is that? Well, one of the reasons has to be the team's poor performance this season.

Aston Martin, a team that was arguably the third-best team on the grid a couple of years back and a two-time podium finisher last season (one of which was taken away), currently has the second slowest car on the grid. Looking at the team's trajectory is not only concerning but also demoralizing for the team because the challenger is performing so much lower than its expectations. It appears that Sebastian Vettel is not entirely sold on the future of Aston Martin and is forced to rethink his future with the team and in the sport.

This is where Fernando Alonso comes in. Aston Martin's team owner Lawrence Stroll has always been impressed with Fernando Alonso and there were even discussions last season between the driver and the team.

Now, we all know Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel were not the best of friends in their earlier days, but will Alonso try to swoop in behind Sebastian Vettel's back just to one-up him for once in his career? Does the animosity really run this deep?

Because other than that, this decision does not make sense for anyone involved.

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The partnership doesn't make sense for Fernando Alonso

First, let's take a look at it from Fernando Alonso's perspective. At 40 years old why is he even planning a move to another team? A team that has, for the last two seasons at least, produced a car that was slower than the Alpine he is currently driving. Now, there is no denying that Alpine hasn't really shown the flashes of brilliance that would one day make it a frontrunner on this grid, but Aston Martin has been categorically worse in every aspect.

Aston Martin was, on average, the slower car when compared to the Alpine of last season and while Alpine finished fifth, Aston Martin only placed seventh. Even in 2022, the Alpine is the better car of the two. However, the drivers' positions in the current Driver Standings could be misleading.

At the moment, even though it's almost unfathomable for either of these teams to transform into a front-running team, for the 40-year-old Alonso, being on the grid has reignited that hunger to compete in the midfield.

With Aston Martin performing the way it is right now, the project looks like a much longer-term project than Alpine. The team is in a state of turmoil and if respected paddock members like Otmar Szafnauer don't have good things to say about it, then, something really is not right.

This rumored change might lead to Alonso getting stranded at the back of the grid once again, which will put him in exactly the same situation as Vettel finds himself in right now. Unless he knows something that none of us do about Aston Martin, the decision to change teams makes no sense.

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The partnership is not ideal for Aston Martin either

What could Aston Martin be planning for the long-term when thinking about hiring a driver who is undoubtedly at the end of his career? Especially, when there are potential superstars like Pierre Gasly and Oscar Piastri, who are waiting for the right drives. Or a drive, period.

While Fernando Alonso had a pretty handy season on his return, was it better than what Pierre Gasly was able to show? How many years is Aston Martin planning on keeping Alonso for when a longer-term prospect like Gasly might be the smarter choice?

What Aston Martin needs, in case Sebastian Vettel decides to retire at the end of the season, isn't another veteran who does not have much time left in the game. They need fresh blood and aggression. More importantly, they need a driver that is hungry to prove himself to the world.

They need someone that has the talent to fight for wins, pole positions and podiums. They need someone like a Pierre Gasly or an Oscar Piastri that is hungry for success.

Alonso, while a great talent by all measures, cannot be the driver the team envisions its glory days with and the harder you think, the more you realize that Alonso at Aston Martin is a very hard sell.

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It will be another in a career filled with bad team choices

In a way, if the Spaniard does move to Aston Martin, this will cap off an illustrious career that was heavily limited by faulty team choices. If we do a quick recap, who can forget that Fernando Alonso was approached by both Red Bull and Honda in the late 2000s. The Spaniard rejected them both and went to Ferrari instead.

Both Red Bull and Honda (in the guise of Brawn GP) went on to win the title for the next five years, until 2013. Although the failure of the Ferrari move was still coincidental, what he did at the end of the 2014 season was not. The move to McLaren-Honda, a brand new, long-term project was ill-timed and impulsive, and ended up costing him multiple frustrating years in anonymity at the back of the grid.

If the move to Aston Martin does come to fruition and the team does not show the kind of improvement that would propel it to the front, it might be the unfortunate end to a career of a Formula 1 legend that was spent driving cars way below his potential.

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As a Fernando Alonso fan (at this moment, who isn't?), one can only hope that something like this doesn't happen and he gets to end his career by having fun in a Formula 1 car. Fernando Alonso is an F1 legend and it will be a pity to see him not finish his career on a high.

Let's hope, this rumor is just a rumor and does not materialize!