Alonso doubted by Schumacher: 'I didn't want that on my return'

Comeback like Schumacher

Alonso's return in 2021 was not welcomed by everyone. What was a 39-year-old driver doing in Formula 1? However, Alpine opted for a return of the prodigal son as the figurehead for the new project. The French team wants to get back to the top and if anyone knows how to do it, it's Alonso.

A return to F1 is not for everyone, however. Michael Schumacher returned after three years, but never reached his old level with Mercedes. ''I know that there were a couple of examples in the past that people were coming back, Kimi or Michael, that they were maybe… we all had the feeling that they were not the same as before. And I didn’t want that in my comeback,'' Alonso said to The Race.

Alonso wants to go on

''I think, more or less, I’m achieving that. I’m the same as I was before. And that was important for me.'' Alonso is particularly referring to his second place in qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix in the rain. Then his real talent came to the surface again, as did his fifth place during the British GP.

Age, however, remains a factor, as Alonso will turn 41 during the weekend of the Hungarian Grand Prix. Alonso himself would like to carry on, but he is a little fed up with questions about his age. ''I feel fast. If not, I will never come back," concludes the 2005 and 2006 world champion.