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Will Alonso race Dakar after F1 retirement? 'Lots of experience required'

Will Alonso race Dakar after F1 retirement? 'Lots of experience required'

16-07-2023 15:55 Last update: 16:30
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Toby McLuskie

At 41, Fernando Alonso is the oldest driver on the current Formula 1 grid. There is little evidence of this, as at the start of the season the 'matador' was almost unstoppable. In Monaco and Canada, Alonso finished second behind Verstappen. What will Alonso actually do after Formula 1? Will he drive the Dakar Rally again? Dakar Rally director David Castera hopes so.

Alonso in Dakar?

"We will see if Alonso comes back when he quits F1. I don't know if he will quit so soon, but let's see him come back. Especially now that he has a good car, it seems unlikely. You can't just arrive and win [in Dakar}, you have to learn a lot. You have to give yourself time. It is not so easy to win a Dakar Rally," Castera told AS.com.

Alonso currently drives an Aston Martin in Formula 1. The Spanish bull has driven the Dakar rally before. Indeed, in 2020, Alonso overturned his car. He was driving a Toyota at the time. The crash caused a broken windscreen. Fellow countryman and fellow Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz won that rally.