Red Bull team boss Horner reveals why it never came to be with Alonso
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Several times, Red Bull Racing came close to signing Fernando Alonso as the team's main driver, however, it never actually came to be. Christian Horner opened up about why talks between the two parties were never successful.
More frequent talks between Alonso and Red Bull
There were talks between the two sides at the end of Alonso's first spell at McLaren in 2008. Horner fondly remembers travelling to Madrid, where he worked hard to commit the two-time world champion to Red Bull Racing. "We wanted to do a two-year deal, and he was only prepared to sign for one year," the team boss said. "We were convinced he had a Ferrari contract in his back pocket at that point. So we didn't get to a deal."
Alonso failed to finish beyond a disappointing ninth in the World Championship while driving at Renault in 2009, before indeed leaving for Ferrari in 2010. Exactly as Horner had predicted. "Had he come to us in 2009, maybe things could have looked slightly differently. And even halfway through the 2009 season, he was convinced if he got in our car, he could still win the championship that year."
However, talks between Horner and Alonso did not stop there. The Red Bull Racing team boss said there were also talks around 2011 or 2012 about Alonso switching from Ferrari to Red Bull. "I remember meeting with him with Adrian (Newey, ed.) in the back of a hire car at Spa airport, I think that was around 2011 or ‘12, about again coming across from Ferrari." Once again, however, a collaboration did not materialise.
Horner also revealed Alonso and Red Bull Racing held talks at the beginning of 2024 to race for the Austrian team, while also praising the Spaniard's longevity in F1 and acknowledging that due to his talent, two world championships is far too short a tally for Alonso. "And then even as early as the beginning of this year too. So, it's incredible the longevity that he's had, the competitiveness that he has. And the statistics, for the talent that he has and the ability he has, two world championships don't do him justice. He should have won more than that," concluded the Briton.
This article was written in collaboration with Corwin Kunst
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