In the ever-evolving chess game of Formula 1, where pre-season bravado meets the cold reality of the track, Fernando Alonso has thrown a seasoned counterpunch at McLaren’s Lando Norris.
The young Brit, riding high off a standout 2024 and a strong week of pre-season testing, recently suggested that the 2025 season could see midfield teams crash the party at the front.
But Alonso, the grizzled veteran attempting to carry Aston Martin to the sharp end of the grid, isn’t buying Norris’ hopeful narrative, and foresees instead a season where stability – and not surprises – will likely reign supreme.
The debate ignited after F1’s three days in Bahrain, where flashes of pace from Williams and Alpine hinted at a tighter field.
Carlos Sainz’s blistering lap on day two with his new team grabbed headlines, while Alpine flexed its muscles near the top on the final day.
With regulations frozen over the winter, the grid appears primed for another step in convergence, fueling Norris’ belief that the likes of a midfield squad could tangle with the big dogs – McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull, and Mercedes.
Yet Alonso, who’s seen it all in his 20-plus years in F1, begs to differ, and he’s not shy about calling out what he sees as Norris’ convenient change of tune.
“Now that [Norris] has the winning car, he says that,” Alonso jabbed, as quoted by Motorsport Week.
“When he was in the fifth or sixth team, he was saying that only one team will win all the races. So, this is a normal, confident speech, you know.
“So, it’s good for him, but I think it’s going to be difficult.”
His words drip with the knowing sarcasm of a driver who’s watched optimism fade under the weight of F1’s harsh realities.
For Alonso, Norris’ newfound faith in midfield miracles smells more like the bravado of a frontrunner than a grounded prediction.
Alonso’s pushback isn’t just personal – it’s structural. He argues that modern F1’s polished perfection leaves little room for the kind of disruption and chaos that could elevate a midfield team.
“Reliability is so good these days, there are not many retirements, there are not many incidents, strategies are quite defined,” he explained.
“Even on Thursday before coming to the Grand Prix, you know exactly it’s going to be one stop, two stops, which tyre you will use.
"So, everything is so perfect now that it’s difficult to change or to make a race unpredictable. It has to be crazy weather or something like that.”
©AstonMartin
In his view, the days of wildcards upending the order are long gone—unless Nature’s elements decide to roll the dice.
However, this isn’t to say Alonso wants a dull season.
“You know, hopefully there are multiple winners and it’s going to be a tight championship,” he conceded. “Last year it was already a very good one and hopefully this year it’s even better.”
But his hope feels more like a polite nod than a firm belief. For Aston Martin, mired in the midfield after being outpaced by Haas and Alpine late in 2024, a static pecking order could spell trouble.
If Williams’ testing promise holds, Alonso’s squad might even slip further back—a grim prospect he refuses to sugarcoat.
Alonso’s take isn’t born from exhaustive analysis of Bahrain’s data dump – he admits he barely followed the action.
“I have no prediction,” he said candidly. “I didn’t follow the test, I know that Carlos was the fastest [on day two] because I read all the Spanish news.
“Apart from that, I don’t know even today who is first and who is second. I think they are all in a different programme. I know McLaren did a good long run and Carlos was first.
“All the rest of the teams, all the days and the teams and info, I’m not aware.”
©AstonMartin
His detachment adds a layer of intrigue: this isn’t a driver poring over lap times, but one leaning on instinct honed over decades.
That instinct tells him continuity will trump upheaval.
“I guess it’s difficult to believe that things will change so much compared to Abu Dhabi,” he mused. “Let’s put it that way. The first four races, I think that things will look similar to Abu Dhabi.”
It’s an underwhelming forecast, one that pegs the season’s early beats to the rhythm of 2024’s finale – where McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull, and Mercedes held court, and Aston Martin lagged behind.
For Norris’ midfield dream to come true, something seismic would need to shift, and Alonso’s not betting on it.
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