Formula 1: Indy 500 now has "high priority" for Fernando Alonso

After winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning the Indy 500 now has a “high priority” for two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso.

Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso entered 2017 with two victories in the crown jewel of the Formula 1 schedule, the Monaco Grand Prix. But he decided to give up his ride in last year’s Monaco Grand Prix to drive in his first career IndyCar race and his first career oval race, the Indianapolis 500, since his frustrations with his McLaren Formula 1 team and their unreliable Honda engines were growing.

McLaren ended a 38-year absence from the Indy 500 to return last year and field an entry for Alonso in a partnership with Andretti Autosport. Alonso drove the #29 Honda in the race, a race in which he qualified for in fifth place.

After starting the race in the middle of the second row, Alonso went on to lead 27 of its laps. However, with just 21 laps to go in the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana, Alonso’s Honda engine failed, preventing him from completing more than 179 of the race’s laps and forcing him to finish back in 24th place despite the fact that he had a great chance to win.

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While Alonso raced in this year’s Monaco Grand Prix and did not return to the Indy 500, there has been growing speculation that he will return to the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” next year and perhaps even join IndyCar as a full-time driver. In fact, there are even rumors that McLaren will join IndyCar full-time and Alonso will drive for them.

Following his first career win in the 24 Hours of Le Mans driving for Toyota Gazoo Racing along with Sebastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima, Alonso now has at least one victory in two of the three legs of the Triple Crown, which includes the Monaco Grand Prix, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Indy 500. As a result of this, the speculation surrounding Alonso’s return to the Indy 500 has begun to heat up even more.

According to the 36-year-old Spaniard himself, returning to and winning the Indy 500 is high on his list of priorities. Here is what he had to say about the matter, according to ESPN.

"“I will make my mind up after the summer what I will do next year, but after winning Le Mans, Indy comes into play with a high priority. Let’s see if it is next year or the following year. Let’s see what the future of F1 will be.“I attempted the Indy 500 last year with that intention and we were leading the race and close to winning but we missed the opportunity. Here we were leading the race and I was worried about missing the opportunity again but here we achieved it. It is definitely a very attractive target to try for the triple crown and see if I can be a better driver, a more complete driver.“Being in Formula One you just follow your team performance and if your team is first you will be first or second and if your team is third you with be fifth or sixth. To be a better driver, a more complete driver, you need to win in every series against the specialists of those series.“To beat the specialists in oval racing or here in endurance the guys as they know every little trick here so to be able to come here and be at that level is great. It makes it is a very attractive target.”"

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Will Fernando Alonso return to the Indianapolis 500 next year? If so, will he win the race to secure at least one victory in each of the three legs of the Triple Crown?

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Formula 1: Indy 500 now has “high priority” for Fernando Alonso

By Asher Fair | Jun 18, 2018

After winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning the Indy 500 now has a “high priority” for two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso.