I Will Always be a Fan of This Sport – Alonso

Alonso leaves Formula One after a stellar 17-year career which yielded two world titles in 2005 and 2006.

The Spaniard entered the sport as a spirited 19-year-old back in 2001 with Minardi before moving to Renault the following season as a test driver.

But his big break came in 2003 when he won his first ever Formula One Grand Prix in Hungary, becoming the youngest ever driver win a F1 race at the time.

Since then, Alonso has established himself as one of Formula One’s greatest ever drivers.

That all came to an end at Abu Dhabi this weekend.

His McLaren car was never going to compete with Mercedes, Red Bull or Ferrari at the front of the grid, but he nearly managed to squeeze his car into the points as he finished 11th.

There was a touching moment after the race as both Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton gave him a great send off.

The three champions lined up on the track at the finish line and began performing doughnuts in unison.

Hamilton and Vettel brought Alonso in for the post-race interviews and the latter looked emotional as he spoke about what he will miss about Formula One.

“It has been pleasure racing with these champions and I feel privileged,” Alonso said.

“Thanks to everyone and to Formula 1.

“I will always be a fan of this sport.”

It has been far from the farewell Alonso would have probably preferred with McLaren giving him a poor car for the past three seasons.

But his motivation to continue driving and head into a new venture deserves to be admired.

Alonso has admitted multiple times this week that he could return to Formula One in the near future so don’t rule out a possible return in 2020.

The Spanish veteran ended the race just outside the points in 11th place.