Alonso feared Schumacher scenario: 'Have a lot of confidence, but not that much'

Alonso turned his back on F1 after his second stint at McLaren. However, he did not rule out a return, provided there were developments in the sport that would rekindle his interest. Those developments came in the form of the new 2022 regulations: leading up to those extensive changes, he made his comeback.

Alonso returned to Alpine, the former Renault, with which he achieved his greatest successes. He is anything but lacking in motivation, yet the now 41-year-old Spaniard had his doubts about returning to motorsport's premier class. He says that, according to Motorsport-Total.com.

Alonso feared Schumacher scenario

"I was thinking about Michael. When he came back, maybe he was not at 100 percent either," said the future Aston Martin driver, referring to Schumacher's comeback in 2010. That return did not go very well for the seven-time world champion, who helped build Mercedes' F1 team. However, the team's huge successes would only follow in the hybrid era, after Schumacher had finally hung up his helmet.

Initially, Alonso feared his own comeback would not be a success either. "I have a lot of confidence, but not so much that I was 100 percent sure I would be fast enough to race at the very highest level," he explains. He added that he did not see himself performing at his best level last year either, but was very close this year.