Aston Martin announced that Fernando Alonso will miss the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix media duty set to take place on Thursday. On Wednesday, the British team confirmed this, ahead of the Brazilian GP weekend, as Alonso was undergoing an intestinal infection treatment in Europe.
As per reports, Alonso flew back to Europe following the conclusion of the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix to treat the infection he had suffered prior to the race. As he was in Europe for the treatment, his arrival in Brazil was delayed.
"Fernando had suffered with an intestinal infection in the lead up to the Mexico City Grand Prix. He returned to Europe to receive further treatment from a specialist," the team statement read. “The extra day of treatment has delayed his travel plans to Brazil but ensures he will be ready for this weekend's racing."
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This comes only after a week when the Spanish driver missed the Mexican GP media duty at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Reports said he was unwell. Notably, Alonso also missed the Mexico City GP FP1, as Felipe Drugovich was set for duty.
However, he took part in FP2 and the subsequent events in Mexico, where he qualified in P13 on Saturday. Unfortunately, his race did not go as planned as he had to retire following a brake cooling issue.
It was the two-time world champion's 400th F1 GP entry and was marred by the issue that could not be resolved on track. His teammate Lance Stroll qualified in P14 and finished the race in P11, just outside of the points.
Fernando Alonso's milestone races jeopardized again
As Fernando Alonso became the first driver to have 400 race entries in Formula 1, he also encountered another unwanted record. His 400th race was jeopardized due to a technical issue, similar to his 200th and 300th.
In 2013, Alonso saw his race go in vain in Malaysia when he suffered a crash. Fortune did not favor him five years later in the United Arab Emirates when he had to retire from the race yet again.
"We tried to mitigate that, moving the brake balance rearwards and different actions, but it was still not under control so unfortunately we had to retire the car – a bit unlucky today," Alonso told the media as he failed to create a different record in Mexico.
Fernando Alonso stands in P9 of the Drivers Standings with 62 points after 20 races and four Sprints. His teammate Lance Stroll has amassed 24 points. Their team, Aston Martin, is currently placed in P5 of the Constructors' Championship with 86 points.
