No Ferrari F1 team exit regrets yet despite Vettel's win - Alonso
Fernando Alonso says Sebastian Vettel's first Formula 1 victory for Ferrari does not mean he was wrong to quit the Scuderia for McLaren
Alonso only scored two podiums for Ferrari during his final season with the Maranello F1 squad in 2014, while Vettel has taken only two races to win since joining Ferrari from Red Bull for '15.
When asked by AUTOSPORT how he felt about Vettel winning in a car Alonso could easily have been driving himself, the Spaniard said it was more important to think about the bigger picture of the world championship.
"It's a question I expected, because Ferrari winning the second race and me out of Q2 is the perfect moment to ask, but I've had five years in Ferrari and finished second [in the championship] three times and I didn't want to finish second a fourth time," Alonso explained ahead of this weeend's Chinese Grand Prix.
"So if they win the championship at the end of the year, maybe I'll have a different opinion; if they finish second or third, I think I'm happy with the decision [to leave].
"There have been years we started very good in Ferrari - winning here in 2013 for example, but when it counts is in November, and in November we never won.
"I want to win in November."
SEEKING FRESH MOTIVATION
Alonso said he needed to change teams to discover fresh motivation and happiness after five seasons at Maranello.
"I had five fantastic years, we were very close two years to winning the championship, and I only have good memories and good feelings [but] it was enough," Alonso said of his time at Ferrari.
"To keep doing laps year after year that was not my motivation anymore.
"It's challenging but I'm looking forward - starting with a new team and a new project, but this makes me happy and full.
"I was not happy with my mind and my soul anymore."
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments