Fernando Alonso says he’s yet to regret leaving Ferrari for McLaren, despite Sebastian Vettel’s win for the Italian outfit last time out in Malaysia.
Alonso, who quit the team and joined the new McLaren-Honda partnership this season, missed the first race after a test crash and then failed to make Q2 in Malaysia.
However, despite there being no signs of drastic improvement from McLaren and Honda just yet, Alonso doesn’t regret his move.
“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,” he said on Thursday.
“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].”
The Spaniard says he needed new motivation and a new challenge and despite the risk, he’s happy with his decision.
“To keep doing laps year after year that was not my motivation anymore,” he added.
“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 [at Ferrari] anymore.”
