Fernando Alonso has warned that there will be “consequences” for those who indulge in spreading misinformation about his potential future with Aston Martin.
Formula 1’s silly season appeared to have melted away into a deep slumber after the sport’s summer break.
But earlier this week social media cooked up unsubstantiated reports claiming that Alonso was hours away from announcing his retirement from F1, while more back-fence talk alleged that the F1 veteran would be transferring to Red Bull Racing for 2024, and slotting into Sergio Perez’s seat.
It is believed that a cryptic tweet by well-respected Spanish F1 journalist Albert Fabrega – in which the latter alluded to a significant story that was about to hit the paddock – sparked the outlandish hearsay.
While there were no dots to connect, peeps on social media insisted on involving Alonso in their fabrications, much to the Spaniard’s ire as he made clear in Sao Paulo on Thursday ahead of this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix.
"It is just rumours, normal paddock rumours, from people that are just trying to make fun of it and gain some followers, and these kinds of things," he said when asked about the situation.
"But I'm not into that game."
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But rather than ignore the outlandish tales and their originators, and move on, Alonso denounced the latter, whoever they may be, and warned of “consequences” if they persisted in feeding their innuendo or falsehoods, although he did not clarify what the repercussions would be.
"I am not enjoying [it] because even in this room, I appreciate that all of you are journalists, professional people, that have been in F1 for so many years," he said.
"You gain your respect, and this is how it should be. So, all the rumours are coming from people that are not in this room, are just here to make fun and I think it's not funny when they play with anything.
"Of course, that's the thing that they are making, but I will make sure that there are consequences.”
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After a remarkable start to its 2023 campaign Aston Martin saw its performance relative to its Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren rivals progressively dwindle over the summer.
But things have gotten worse for Team Silverstone lately, with the team’s latest upgrade introduced in Austin seemingly failing to improve the AMR23’s form.
However, Alonso reminded all that Aston remains a work in progress and that much has been achieved this year by its crews both on and off the track.
"We are obviously not as competitive as we want it," he said. "And we all try to get to our best level, which is obviously not the one that we're showing now.
"But we are analysing some of the upgrades that we brought lately. Here in Brazil, we have a sprint format, so maybe it is a more traditional weekend for us, not experimenting as much as the last two.
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"Obviously, we are not happy. Mike [Krack] is not happy, no one is happy with the current form. But at the same time, I said a few races ago, this team was 250 people two years ago, now we are in this transition to be hopefully a contender for the future with 800 people, and a new factory.
"Seven podiums this year, 200 points more than last year, all these kinds of things which are not the current form. We should not be happy, but we cannot even be too dramatic about the situation when this 2023 campaign has been a super season for us."
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