Between the Lines at the Spanish Grand Prix

The F1’s official FIA Press Conferences are the traditional home of ‘for sure’, ‘the team’s done an amazing job’ and ‘we’re investigating that’, but what lies behind the platitudes? F1i reckons it has the answer…

Thursday 8 May 2015 – Drivers’ Press Conference Spain

Fernando Alonso

The Question: There was some glowing praise for you in the past week from McLaren boss Ron Dennis, how has that relationship evolved since your return to the team?

What Fernando said:

It’s been great. I have been always very luck to have the support of all my teams and all of my bosses, especially when I am in the team. When I say no to them they change their opinion a bit but that’s how the sport runs and I understand but what is important is to be happy with your job, to know and to make sure that your discipline and your professionalism is at the highest level when you are working for a team and that the people who pay you at the end of the month are happy.

What he might have meant to say:

He’s a great guy. I have been round his house loads of times. We eat cake and play Subbuteo all night. No, seriously, I screw this guy over once before and if he messes with me again, I will do the same. I would do it, as the great Don Henley of the Eagles once say, in a New York Minute. No one crosses Fernando and lives to tell the tale. Any more of this ‘the team-mate is a nice guy, let him win’ or ‘Fernando you have to play nice’ he gets this [draws finger across throat]. Also, he hug me at the car launch and tell me that we are in something called a relationship re-alignment configuration. I did not understand this, he is cuckoo.