Zak Brown is a "massive fan' of Fernando Alonso
Ahead of Fernando Alonso's 400th F1 race, McLaren Racing's CEO Zak Brown has revealed that he has been a massive fan of the two-time F1 world champion.
Having kicked off his weekend in Mexico City with illness, Fernando Alonso is set to complete his 400th F1 race at today's Mexico City Grand Prix. The Spaniard made his debut at the pinnacle of motorsport with Minardi in 2001 which was followed by a year that he spent with Renault as a test driver.
The Oviedo-born driver returned to the sport as a full-time race driver in 2003, clinching his first F1 victory in that season. With Renault coming up with an innovative car for the 2005 F1 season, Alonso secured his first F1 title, beating McLaren's Kimi Räikkönen. The next season saw the Spaniard receive fierce competition from Ferrari's Michael Schumacher, but he was able to add a second F1 title to his achievements.
Although he joined McLaren in the following season, he returned to Renault for the 2008 and 2009 F1 season before heading to Ferrari. Despite securing several sensational victories with the fabled Maranello-based outfit and getting close to further F1 titles in 2010 and 2012, he elected to part ways with the team to join forces with McLaren again in 2015.
Following a difficult period at the Woking-based outfit that saw McLaren struggle with its new engine partner, Honda, Alonso decided to leave Formula One at the end of the 2018 season before returning to the pinnacle of motorsport with Alpine for the 2021 season. The two-time F1 world champion left the Enstone-based team after just a single season to join Aston Martin.
Asked to comment on the two-time world champion's achievement in Formula One and in other disciplines of motorsport, McLaren CEO Zak Brown has insisted that he has been a "massive fan" of the Spaniard.
"Fernando is awesome. He's one of my favorite racing drivers. He's a proper racing driver. He wants to race anything he can get, and his focus is amazing. To have his level of talent being this long in Formula 1 is impressive.
"He is capable of winning Grand Prix and the World Championship in a race-winning championship-calibre race car, and so you've got to admire for him to have done Dakar and Le Mans and jump in at the Indy 500.
"He is a throwback to the days where the Mario Andrettis hopped around and the Dan Gurneys. I'm a massive fan of Fernando's and enjoy watching him race, and he's a tough competitor to race against," the American said.
