MONTMELO, Spain (AP) — Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso has signaled he is near the end of his career after saying Sunday's race will likely be his last in Barcelona.
The Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, the new name for the race held outside Barcelona, won’t be staged in 2027 as it starts being held every two years.
“It is probably going to be my last Barcelona race in Formula 1,” the 44-year-old Alonso told reporters at the track on Thursday.
Alonso quickly added he was not announcing his retirement, but the fact that the next Barcelona race will be in 2028 made it less likely he will take part.
He said in the coming months he will think hard about whether he is willing to keep racing next season while Aston Martin gives him a car that struggles to get him even near the top.
“I don’t have anything in mind, and after the summer I will take the decision to continue or not,” the Spaniard said. “But Barcelona is not happening next year, and if I don’t know what I am doing next year it is near impossible to know what I will doing two years from now.
“Every race I go to could be my last.”
Alonso is an icon of Spanish sports thanks to his world championships in 2005 and 2006, and he has remained one of the series' best drivers, even though he has never had the car to match his skills for several years.
His last F1 victory, No. 32, came in 2013 at this track in Montmelo. Few racing fans would then have imagined that Alonso, who remained sharp behind a wheel, would not stand atop a podium again.
Still, tens of thousands of his fans flock to the Spanish race to cheer him on each year.
This season he has just one point and was 18th out of 22 drivers.
And while Alonso said he was “at peace” with his career, it hurt not to be competitive.
“The hardest thing is to not win races and not be competitive,” he said. “If (this season) is the last, it is not affecting me. I am at peace now with myself and my career. I achieved a lot more than I ever dreamt when I was a kid."
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
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