Alonso commits to Aston Martin into 2027 and says he still feels as fast as anyone

Alonso extends Aston Martin stay

Fernando Alonso has committed to staying in Formula 1 with Aston Martin for at least one more year, confirming he will remain on the grid in 2027. The 45-year-old Spaniard, who made his F1 debut at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix before eight current drivers were born, said the biggest single reason is that he "still feels fast".

"First, this is my life," Alonso told BBC Sport in his only English language interview about his decision, which was announced on Tuesday. "I have this in my blood and I keep racing and I keep enjoying and this is a way of life, in a way."

"Probably for me the biggest, or the clearest thing to keep racing is I still feel self-confidence that I have something extra. And when I think about stepping down or taking a different role in the team or not driving the car or whatever, in a way I feel it should not be like that because I still feel as fast as anybody. So let's have another go."

Performance pride despite anonymity

Alonso's most recent podium came at the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix. Aston Martin has been close to the back of the grid for most of 2026, and Honda's engine has been the worst in the field on its official return.

"When I jump in the car, in free practice, I will see some people braking late in a corner, locking up the front tyres here or there, making mistakes there," Alonso said. "I feel that I'm OK. Or, I'm faster than them."

He accepts the current period is anonymous. "You only prove to people when you are in the podium or you are on TV," he said. "That's where eyes are open, and people remember suddenly that you're still on the grid. So now I'm at peace with this period of time that I'm anonymous, and no one knows that we're still there and we're still fast."

He pointed to the Dutch Grand Prix as evidence, where he finished ninth holding off Alpine's Pierre Gasly and Racing Bulls' Yuki Tsunoda in the final stint.

Dislike of 2026 rules but hope for change

Like Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, Alonso has been one of the most critical voices on the 2026 rules. He has called F1 the "battery world championship", described fast corners as "the charging station for the car", and said "the chef could drive the car" in Bahrain.

"That's a good question, because that was the hardest thing for me," he said of staying despite his criticism. He hopes the power ratio shift to 60-40 by 2028 will help, and noted the FIA and Formula 1 are listening.

"It does help that the sport keeps chasing ideas and talking to the drivers and the teams about how to make things better, even for the next set of regulations. This gives me also some hope that I will enjoy more the driving next year than I did this year."

The Newey factor

A key influence was Adrian Newey, who joined Aston Martin as managing technical partner in March 2025. Alonso said the team "has all the ingredients to have success in the future" and he did not feel it was the moment to leave.

"Adrian was probably the biggest contributor to this. We didn't start it right this year but things are moving in the right direction and he's capable of changing things very quickly."

Alonso also cited continuity with owner Lawrence Stroll and team-mate Lance Stroll, saying: "Aston is my family. I know Lawrence and Lance for many, many years. We keep open conversations, many different topics, every week. And that will be the case also for next year."