McLaren CEO Zak Brown has admitted “it’s disappointing” the team didn’t provide two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso with a better car in his second stint.
Alonso, 43, returned to McLaren in 2015 having previously raced for the team during an intense 2007 season alongside then-rookie Lewis Hamilton.
Sadly, Alonso’s return to McLaren didn’t reap a title-capable car like he had in ’07 and instead, the Spaniard was forced to compete during the troubled early years of Honda’s hybrid F1 power unit project.
Despite a final year with the team in 2018 under Renault power, Alonso elected to end his time at McLaren and entered a two-year hiatus and Brown regrets he was unable to provide the F1 veteran with a more capable car.
“If I put aside Lando [Norris] and Oscar [Piastri], because obviously I’m biased, I’d say Fernando Alonso is a pretty special talent,” Brown told DAZN Spain.
“I have a great relationship with Fernando. It’s disappointing that we didn’t have a better car when he was racing with us.
“It’s awesome to watch him race, he’s very smart. And to see him still performing at the level he is performing the older he is, he’s great and he’s a great friend.”
Brown joined McLaren in 2016 as an Executive Director, upgrading 18 months later to the position of CEO.
Since then, Brown has overseen McLaren’s revival and at the present moment, papaya-clad cars are among the very best in the sport.
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have a win apiece so far in 2024 and their combined efforts have seen McLaren go on a run of 10 straight podiums to go within 42 points of Constructors’ Championship leaders Red Bull.
Alonso meanwhile, returned to F1 in 2021 with Alpine, returning the rostrum during that year’s Qatar Grand Prix.
A switch to Aston Martin in 2023 saw the Spaniard go on a run of six podiums in the first eight races, showing that he remains amongst F1’s elite drivers.
Alonso now has to watch his former team contend for victories with Aston Martin fading into obscurity, but the future could look better for the Silverstone-based outfit.
Aston Martin has a state-of-the-art factory with a new wind tunnel set to come online ahead of a Honda works engine partnership in 2026.
Moreover, the Silverstone-based team appear to be in pole position to secure the services of F1 design master Adrian Newey.
Should all these ingredients come together, Brown may rue not only being unable to provide Alonso with a quality car during his McLaren days, but being forced to watch him win in British Racing Green.
