Alonso's future

[N4D13]

So what do you think Alonso will be doing in 2019?

After today's dreadful qualifying session for McLaren, I think the only way they'll get to keep him for 2019 will be by setting up an IndyCar team. Other than that, can't see him wearing orange next year.

[Tazio]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjBspMCyqT0

[The Black Knight]

It’s hard for me to find any sympathy for Alonso and the way his career has gone. He has made bad decision after bad decision in his career

We talk about him being the most complete driver on the grid but I’m not sure anymore. If you look at all the greats, Senna, Schumacher, Hamilton, they all made key career defining decisions at the right time which turned out to be correct. That in itself is a skill and sense a driver must have. It’s a skill Alonso definitely lacks. It’s part of being a racing driver to make those key decisions and his decision making has been disastrous, along with his internal team politics for his career.

There’s no doubting his skill inside the cockpit but, to be a complete driver, you need to be able to manage the political aspect well. Schumacher had that in abundance, so does Hamilton. Alonso not so much. From my point of view, this skill is just as important as any when evaluating the most complete driver on the grid.

Anyway, I have my doubts he will be on the grid for 2019.

[Big Ben]

You are a moron

[Jag_Warrior]

Unless he's content to be a mid-pack racer in F1 (at best) until retirement, I think he might as well do something else. I honestly don't see McLaren returning to the sharp end of the grid any time soon. That team seems to be in a race with Williams for has-been status. And I don't see any chance of one of the top teams hiring him. There's no doubt in my mind that he could come to North America and find immediate success in the IRL. So if he wants the Triple Crown, why not get a jump start?

I'm not an Alonso fan, but even I find it rather sad to see that much talent going to waste. He's largely done it to himself, but still.

[Duncan]

He'll be in Indycar next season, as the lead driver for McLaren's return to that series. I'm more and more convinced that's what he and Zak are planning.

His seat at McLaren will be taken either by Lando Norris or (outside chance) Daniel Ricciardo, in which case Max will be promoted to the RBR #1 seat and partner Pierre Gasly.

[zako85]

McLaren's sharp and ongoing downfall starting with the 2013 season has been puzzling and painful to watch. I agree that Alonso should have known better than switch to a team that was already struggling the previous two seasons.

Alonso coming to IndyCar would be great news for the North American racing. Despite the usual critiques of IndyCar (e.g. ugly cars, spec chassis, etc), the real problem with IndyCar is the lack of top level talent in the series. Even Formula 1 has-beens avoid this series preferring Formula E, WEC, or DTM, but in the 1980s and 1990s you could see F1 legends in IndyCar, and IndyCar being a feeder series to the F1 having provided the drivers like Villeneuve and JPM.

[Koz]

It’s hard to blame Alonso for moving back to McLaren. In 2012, they had the best car on the grid.

A failed concept in 2013 could easily be written off as an outlier year and 2014, with regulation changes, could have gone pretty much anyway.

That said in 2014, there was no inherent difference between Ferrari and McLaren, any difference could certainly be calked off to Alonso’s talent, seeing how both McLaren driver did better than Kimi anyway. Yes, they had a much better engine, but still. We also have to remember that the Ferrari engine didn’t get better until last year.

Hindsight is a bitch, but you have to take risks in life.

[Zico]

It’s hard for me to find any sympathy for Alonso and the way his career has gone. He has made bad decision after bad decision in his career

We talk about him being the most complete driver on the grid but I’m not sure anymore. If you look at all the greats, Senna, Schumacher, Hamilton, they all made key career defining decisions at the right time which turned out to be correct. That in itself is a skill and sense a driver must have. It’s a skill Alonso definitely lacks. It’s part of being a racing driver to make those key decisions and his decision making has been disastrous, along with his internal team politics for his career.

There’s no doubting his skill inside the cockpit but, to be a complete driver, you need to be able to manage the political aspect well. Schumacher had that in abundance, so does Hamilton. Alonso not so much. From my point of view, this skill is just as important as any when evaluating the most complete driver on the grid.

Anyway, I have my doubts he will be on the grid for 2019.

We think quite differently but that's ok..

If Im talking about any driver on the grid being a complete driver, I'm talking about their racecraft/actual driving skill/decision making on the circuit.

If they are prone to making bad career moves that limits their championship success... that does not come into the driving equation for me at all.
It just means they weren't as successful as they could have been.