Fernando Alonso: The silent warrior of Formula One

Fernando Alonso has been a fighter throughout his career

Boy from Oviedo does Spain proud

Oviedo in northern Spain owes its allegiance and name to a world famous religious relic called the “Sudarium of Oviedo”. In layman language, the Sudarium at Oviedo actually refers to a blood-stained piece of cloth that was wrapped around the forehead of Lord Jesus Christ after he died, presently kept safe at the Cathedral of San Salvador. Tourists, locals and travelers from all over the world consider Oviedo as a significant mythological stop of great history without burying the beautiful city under a debris of religious dialogue.

With a rich architectural history beckoning its recognition around the world as a picturesque citadel of beautifully constructed buildings, the legacy of Oviedo is one that is marked by unforgettable man made structures. But that is not all. There is another symbol, revered the world over, that can be considered as Oviedo’s moving “man-made” marvel, one that serenades the fast paced world of Formula One and serves as the very heartline of Spanish fans in the country and across the continent.

This symbol, hailing from the capital territory of Asturias in northern Spain, has become a legend at a young age and constantly gives the world great reason to celebrate the wonder that Spain is. The symbol goes by the name Fernando Alonso.

Hailing from a country that has contributed a number of sparkling stars in the galaxy of sports like tennis and football in the form of the entire Spanish football team and a certain Rafael Nadal, Alonso is the solitary confirmation that Spain is not far behind when it comes to excelling at F1: the pinnacle of all motorsports.

Stint in Ferrari

Having spent 12 glorious seasons in the exhilrating world of Formula One, Alonso, now aged 34 and into his 13th competitive season, wouldn’t exactly be worried by a sense of ill luck associated with the numerical figure of 13. The critics were hounding him by saying that it was his sheer bad luck for being paired with Kimi Raikkonen in 2014 at Ferrari; there was widespread belief that the Finn would easily outperfrom the lad from Spain and would emerge as the top draw at the team.

In reality, since the commencement of the season up to this point, it is Alonso who has remained ahead, and by a definitive margin, putting the assumptions and rumours about bad luck behind him.

And why would he worry now? Apart from driving car no. 14 which has been the one associated with more pace, skill and unmatched prowess on all circuits so far, he has gained a certain control over Ferrari’s last world champion. Raikkonen, who has not always been regarded as the arch rival to Fernando Alonso, has been seen struggling in a fashion never before associated with his cool and calm character, leaving the team to just rally around the better, and “more in control” driver – Alonso. This has put on the Spaniard’s dependable shoulders the crucial responsibility of scoring the bulk of the points, and the man has responded with some class.

Since the start of the season, Alonso has remained silent to the mounting chants favouring the stylish Finn, and has chosen to answer the questions with supreme skill and pace when it mattered the most. Many regard Alonso as a tactical master of the craft required to succeed in F1, and he does combine brute thinking and raw pace to pull out some aces in his favour.

Alonso’s approach to conquering glory in motorsports does remind one of the uncanny abilities of “The Professor” Alain Prost. Prost ensured great results in his favour by decoding the thinking of his rival, influencing the team to favour him for his supreme skills and when it mattered on the track, he would always call on his great speed to suceed. Alonso, on the other hand, has not just outpaced his teammate in every single race but has, importantly, begun to enjoy the backing of the team bosses thanks to some gritty performances in the 2014 season; picture Monaco, China and Hungary.

Alonso, now clearly the numero uno performer for Ferrari, has been the “go to” man as far as leading the charge of the team is concerned. And this scenario isn’t a new phenomenon. It has been a permanent occurrence since his recruitment at the Maranello-based outfit in the 2010 season following the departure of Raikkonen, the latter of whom is still hailed for being Ferrari’s last world champion after his epic 2007 World Championship win.

Producing results in a less than impressive car

Everybody knows that as a team Ferrari hasn’t produced an ideal car for its two world champs to compete with. In fact, many have lamented that the car is literally “undriveable”. While the car may not exactly be one that can turn up astounding performances for its drivers, complaining about the machine can accomplish nothing. Alonso clearly understood the sad scenario and instead of ruing about the mediocre car given to him, replete with technical glitches, none of which rest in his hands, has produced some fine results.

He currently stands at No. 4 in the driver standings for the season and his teammate isn’t even in the top 10. That is some performance by a bloke driving for a team that, in terms of strategy and car-engineering quality, is way behind the leaders of the world championship – Mercedes. Ferrari, with their less than substantive design, are even trailing Red Bull, who in turn may have not cracked the perfect solution to counter Mercedes but are being regarded as the second best car on the track this season ahead of their reeling contemporaries.

The 2012 season

Forget the present scenario and rewind the clocks back to 2012. In every single race, if there was one singular threat coming in the way of the now four time world champion, Sebastian Vettel, then it was none other than Alonso. The Spaniard was the only source imposing any kind of resistance to the German’s blitzkrieg, who conquered almost every race. It does seem unfair that Fernando was still driving a weaker car when compared to the Herculean strength that Vettel had at his disposal, with the Milton Keyenes based outfit producing the strongest Red Bull car in a long time giving Seb the clear edge over his arch rival and closest competitor.

Back then in the 2012 World Championship the rivalry of Vettel and Alonso reached such a grueling level that it constantly dominated headlines, scored over any other motorsport story, and transformed the season into one that hinged on the exuberance of a forever hungry Vettel and the domineering and mighty Fernando Alonso.

While Vettel on the one hand was was going from strength to strength winning every race like a walk in the park , Alonso on the other hand was literally grappling with his Ferrari. Even then, he continued to push and only because of his elan and passion to drive as best as he could, could he ensure a nail biting finish to the world championship duel which otherwise would have simply been a one sided affair thanks to the raging speed of Sebastian.

The way Alonso exploited the wet qualifying conditions at Britain and Germany, taking pole positions in both, is testimony to his insatiable appetite to succeed at the highest level. Let us not forget that at Silverstone, he suffered a surprising and scary spin. While the now retired Webber outpaced him finally at Britain, he cornered Button and resisted Vettel to win at Germany, exerting his pomp and proving just why is he regarded one of the all time best in Formula One. He drove one of the best, most effortless drives that year at Malaysia but reserved his best for that season when he won at Valencia, mostly thanks to Vettel’s retirement. All this time, competing in a car that many would still label as “barely driveable or meekly competitive”.

Hunger to win

He finished No. 2 that season, just three points behind Vettel. Images of Alonso’s burn out expression at the end of the Brazilian GP are reminiscent of a demi god bowing down painfully, having succumbed to a mighty fallout with destiny. He sighed while Vettel celebrated with the usual in-your-face thumping celebration. Alonso’s answer to Vettel’s Red bull finger expression was one of exasperation, but it also possessed a certain affirmation that the driver had indeed put his very best.

Alonso talks and answers doubts sorrounding him and on his preparations about a Grand Prix battle with a certain candidness and gratitude at having got an opportunity to compete at the highest level.

While the other drivers out there are seen with a certain sense of nonchalance when attending to the press and doing their regular media commitments, Alonso seems always busy. Forever a thinker and more importantly a high voltage performer, even when he isn’t busy racing Formula One cars, he can be seen pushing the envelope while enjoying a bicycle ride. Yes, this is a standard Fernando Alonso preparatory operation before the start of every F1 race.

When he talks you can clearly see the zeal and flair associated with a rookie driver or a first timer at the competition; such is his incandescent drive. The 2013 season was one where he lost out to Vettel again and this time by a larger margin, but the fact that the mighty competitive Alonso finished again on the second spot in the drivers standing, this being his second in succession, proves why he has become synonymous with consistency.

Fans turn up to watch Alonso

It is an unacknowledged fact that if the stands are still filling in with fans sporting the devilish red and standing in unison to support Ferrari, then it is largely because of Fernando Alonso. He has given them much to cheer about. His first victory for Ferrari at their home race at Monza in 2010 was one that sent the crowd berserk with happiness. There was a certain passion in the air that evening and the atmosphere was buzzing. But making merry on the podium with the huge champagne bottle wasn’t going to be the only glorious moment for Alonso at Ferrari. For him to have held the team flag immediately after his victory, as soon as he parked the car on the No. 1 lot, was enough to catapult his recognition in Italy to greater heights. The crowd loved him and the Ferrari camp had warmed up to him, sensing that hiring this double world champ wasn’t after all a bad gamble.

Since coming into Ferrari, the man hasn’t looked back. He lets his haters be and allows his doubters to slay his reputation howsoever they want to, even turning a blind eye to some potholed thinkers who unabashedly go the extent of calling him no match to the giant that Vettel has become. But even Vettel knows that if he is a four-time world champion, then somewhere in his great climb to glory, he ought to thank Fernando for extracting the best out of him. Alonso has pushed the German to the limit, ever threatening to steal his thunder by his committed performances, that left the German with no option but move every muscle to stay clear and ahead of the brave Spaniard.

Tactically strong

Having struck glory twice at Renault, a team where he attained the double world championship, part of Alonso’s success comes from the uncanny ability to be aware of his rivals’ bent of mind and relative weaknesses. The success of a military commander can be judged by the length of his awareness about the preparations of the enemy camp and its brazen weaknesses, and in Formula One’s ruthless world, the more alert you are, the more your chances to succeed. Alonso cleverly uses this to his advantage.

He never reacted when everyone regarded Raikkonen higher than him before the start of 2014, but knowing very well that Kimi would take his own time to get adjusted to the new, hybrid engines of Ferrari, Alonso was quick to respond with greater aggression and superior speed. He ensured that the car development would go according to his liking, a facet that has come under worldwide scrutiny for apparently reducing the chances of Raikkonen to gun for glory.

But if seen carefully, while Kimi doesn’t like to communicate going out of the way, Alonso being the more outspoken candidate at Ferrari talked the engineers out to sculpt a machine that would suit him and his driving style, ensuring that he was given a car that gave him the feel and handling that he is comfortable with and could adapt to. This is where Raikkonen lost out; of course, the season is not over and the ace driver can still bounce back. But Alonso at the moment seems to be the man in total control.

A tough competitor

With two World Championships, some thundering performances and as many as 32 victories and 97 podium finishes, Alonso has been recently inducted into the F1 Hall of Fame. He is seen as someone who can change the complexion of any race on any track by his sheer will. He is often cunningly quick at the corners, and while his present car may not provide him the all important straight line speed, Alonso’s sheer pace and unique presence in the sport is enough to elevate the stress lines on the forehead of his rivals. Not Hamilton’s ideal teammate and one that Vettel dreads competing against, he is causing problems for newcomers like Ricciardo who thought he would be a veteran who could be easily pushed aside, but are now finding that reality is stranger than fiction.

Alonso is also seen as a driver with some ego; after all, he has recently given a green signal to a museum being built to celebrate his racing career. For a stalwart with some sizzling performances in his list of achievements, such moves only stoke the ego to perform better and score more heights.

But the world of F1 is one where fortunes change as quickly as the conditions or temperatures on the track, and while newcomers like Bottas, Hulkenberg and Ricciardo gear up for their duels with so called veterans like Alonso and Raikkonen who are still the folks to beat, the outcome of every encounter can only be thrilling if not merely a product of mindless speculation.

Our wishes have to be with the better driver who manages to outsmart the equally threatning line of competition, one that boasts of prodigious names like Hamilton, Rosberg and Button, the first two not only being around for some time but also heading the 2014 leaderboard thanks to their beathtaking performances. But the new stars have begun to understand that icons like Fernando Alonso are no pushovers.

Back there in his Ferrari camp, it seems that the Samurai of Speed still has a lot of aces up his sleeve.