Fernando Alonso is F1's greatest s***house and Hamilton's toughest-ever opponent – now he could be fighting Max Verstappen for title

Connor Andrews

Mar 3

Formula 1 has attracted plenty of new fans in recent years, and unbeknownst to them, the whole show is about to arrive.

Netflix's Drive to Survive is booming and an epic Lewis Hamilton vs Max Verstappen rivalry has been born, but F1's new golden era could still step up a level.

Hamilton and Verstappen's rivalry has captivated F1 fans but an old name may be about to enter the battle

Still credited by Hamilton as his toughest-ever opponent, Fernando Alonso was the seven-time champion's first real rival, and he may now be back.

Pre-season testing in Bahrain showed extraordinary pace from the Spaniard's new team, Aston Martin, backing up his confident car launch predictions.

The 41-year-old said he's 'fitter than ever' and backed the Lawrence Stroll-led team to challenge for wins soon, whether it's with him in the sport or not.

Two-time world champion Alonso is often a showman, but he came across utterly convinced about Aston's ambitions when talking to the press, and early signs suggest he may be proved right.

The team in British racing green have been busy snapping up some of the best talent on the grid, including former Red Bull aerodynamicist Dan Fallows, and their AMR23 is looking rather tasty.

Due to a cycling accident, Lance Stroll was unable to take part in testing, allowing Alonso to fully get to grips with the car.

His stability, pace and tyre degradation on long runs led many to predict Aston may well be behind Red Bull and Ferrari as the third-fastest team, and even challenging the latter.

Alonso broke into the sport and took down the great Michael Schumacher

He may now be back in a car capable of regular podiums, or even wins

Alonso and Hamilton could be on the same piece of tarmac, and F1 fans are buzzing for it

That means Alonso could very well start the season in front of Hamilton, a position that started his legendary s***housing...

Stalling Hamilton

Back in 2007, off of consecutive titles with Renault, Alonso rocked up as an undisputed number one, but was given a spritely young Hamilton to deal with.

Even with the Brit's status as a future champion, there was little question he could trouble Alonso in his debut season, but he did exactly that, ending in his Spanish counterpart leaving at the end of the season.

There was plenty of drama along the way, though, particularly in qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix when Hamilton defied team orders to let Alonso through for a flying lap.

The two returned to the pits to refuel for their final shot at pole position, and fuming at the indiscretion, Alonso arrived at the pit box ahead of his teammate, and refused to leave, holding up Hamilton so the clock would run down and he wouldn't get a final lap.

It worked, with Alonso heading out to snatch pole, but he was later relegated to sixth on the grid after an investigation, and Hamilton won the race.

It was a big risk to put two champions in the same car, and it backfired spectacularly

Alonso held up Hamilton to perfection with the pit crew waiting for him to go

Pranking the media

As the most experienced driver in F1 history, Alonso has had to deal with the media on a weekly basis for over two decades.

He very rarely hits out at them, saving that for his team or rivals, but occasionally still finds ways to let off some steam.

This not only includes ruining camera shots, but even a sneaky punch below the belt - and one individual ended up in a pool.

Sunbathing rather than driving

In a different season at McLaren, but still equally livid with the car, Alonso was not only tired of its speed, but also its lack of reliability.

That came to a hilarious conclusion in Brazil, when after breaking down yet again, he got out of his stricken car and chilled in a camping chair, before having a go on a camera at trackside.

Russian trick

After two years out of F1, Alonso returned with Alpine in 2021, and not much had changed.

His Renault powered car was certainly faster than the McLaren that he gave up with, but he still had plenty to get frustrated with, including the rules.

With many tedious street circuits on the calendar including huge run off areas, track limits were constantly being abused, and Alonso decided he'd had enough.

At Sochi in Russia, one of the dullest tracks of the season and worst for limits, drivers were told if they ran wide at turn two, they had to drive round a bollard at turn two before re-entering the track.

Realising the stupidity of the rule, on the first lap Alonso didn't even try to make the corner, flying straight off the track, round the bollard and up to third from a ninth-place starting position.

It proved to be utter genius when he took the car home for an excellent fourth place, with the race stewards knowing there was little they could do as he followed their laws.

Alonso didn't even try to make the corner as everyone else slammed on the brakes

Tsunoda ticked off

Last year in Austria, Alonso was having fun trying to pass Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda.

It was a tense battle and the Japanese tried to put him on the grass.

Excellent car control allowed the Spaniard to keep things steady, and pass his opponent, and he still managed to stick a finger out the cockpit to wag at Tsunoda, even at 180mph.

Alonso wagged his finger as he passed his Japanese rival

Plenty of phone signal

Alonso looked settled at Alpine for the past few years, but shocked the grid when he announced he would be joining Aston Martin for 2023.

It soon became clear that there were tensions behind the scenes when Alpine announced junior driver Oscar Piastri as his replacement, but the Australian said he wouldn't race for them, and later opted for McLaren.

As the drama unfolded in the paddock, Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer was asked about Alonso and said 'he's hard to contact as he's out on a boat in the Greek islands'.

Any chances that Alonso's phone signal were down were quickly quashed, though, when he uploaded a selfie with his thumb up in his hometown of Oviedo in the ultimate trolling of his boss.