Formula 1: Red Bull Racing all but rule out signing Fernando Alonso for 2019

Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner does not believe that it would be healthy for the team to sign two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso for the 2019 Formula 1 season.

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner has all but ruled out the team signing two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso for the 2019 Formula 1 season, as he does not believe that signing the 37-year-old Spaniard would be healthy for the team.

Red Bull Racing are seeking a replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, who has driven for the team since the 2014 season but signed a two-year contract last Friday to drive for Renault Sport starting next season.

Alonso, who won his two Formula 1 championships in the 2005 and 2006 seasons, is in his 17th season in Formula 1. He currently drives for McLaren, where he has driven since the 2015 season. He also drove for the team back in the 2007 season.

Over the course of his Formula 1 career, Alonso has competed in 303 races. In those 303 races, he has racked up 32 victories, 97 podium finishes and 22 pole position starts. His most recent victory came in the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix, and his most recent podium finish came in the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix when he finished in second place.

Here is what Horner had to say about Red Bull Racing potentially signing Alonso for the 2019 season. according to Motorsport.com.

"“I’ve got huge respect for Fernando, he’s a great, fantastic driver, but it would be very difficult to see. He’s tended to cause a bit of chaos wherever he’s gone. I’m not sure it would be the healthiest thing for the team for Fernando to join. Our preference would be to continue to invest in youth than take a driver who is obviously close to the end of his career.“We’re fortunate that we’ve got several drivers under contract that are great talents. I think we’re going to sit back and evaluate what the situation is, see what comes out. It’s an incredibly attractive car to be driving, I don’t think we’re going to be short of requests and offers.“I think we’ll look at everything. The preferred route will be to invest, as has been so successful, in home talent. [Sebastian] Vettel, Verstappen, Ricciardo, Sainz, Gasly – they are all products of the junior programme that have delivered for us.“Both of those guys [Sainz and Gasly] are very quick drivers so I think this just gives us opportunity to take a breath. They’re under contract anyway till the end of the summer or beyond. We’ll look at the options available to us and make sure we make the right decision for the team.”"

Carlos Sainz Jr. and Pierre Gasly are two of the top replacement candidates for Ricciardo next season, so the only major takeaway from what Horner stated is that the odds that Red Bull Racing will sign Alonso, another potential replacement candidate for the 29-year-old Australian, to become a teammate to Max Verstappen in 2019 are not that high.

McLaren used Honda engines from the 2015 season through the 2017 season, and Alonso was very critical of the Japanese manufacturer during this time, as he never finished a race in higher than fifth place and he never finished a season in higher than 10th in the driver standings during this three-year span.