IndyCar: Fernando Alonso going for Triple Crown and a place among greats

Fernando Alonso will become the second driver to win the Triple Crown of Motorsport if he can win IndyCar’s most prestigious race, the Indianapolis 500.

The Triple Crown of Motorsport is one of the most prestigious “unofficial” accomplishments that a driver can achieve in the racing world. To win the Triple Crown, a driver must win what are considered to be the three biggest races in the world. These races are Formula 1‘s Monaco Grand Prix, IndyCar‘s Indianapolis 500 and the World Endurance Championship’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Only one driver has ever won all three of these races, and that driver is Graham Hill. Hill won the Monaco Grand Prix five times between the 1963 and 1969 Formula 1 seasons, putting him just one win behind the record of six, which is held by Ayrton Senna.

Hill captured his first and only Indy 500 win in 1966, and he finished off his Triple Crown with a win in the 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans. He is considered not only one of the greatest race car drivers of his time, but one of the greatest race car drivers of all-time.

There are two active drivers who have won two of the three Triple Crown races, and they are Alonso and Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya won the Indy 500 in 2000 and 2015, and he won the Monaco Grand Prix in 2003, so he just needs to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans to check the final box. All Alonso needs is an Indy 500 victory, and with the race scheduled to take place in just under two weeks, this could be the year in which he makes history.

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Alonso’s attempt in this year’s Indy 500 is set to be his second. It was announced in November that he would return to the race as the driver of a Chevrolet-powered car for McLaren in 2019, and it was announced in February that McLaren are set to form an alliance with Carlin for this race.

The 37-year-old Spaniard’s first crack at winning the race took place in 2017 when he drove for McLaren, which formed a partnership with Andretti Autosport for the race. He had a very good showing until his #29 Honda experienced a mechanical failure with 21 laps remaining in the 200-lap race around the four-turn, 2.5-mile (4.023-kilometer) Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Speedway, Indiana, and he failed to finish the race as a result of it. He showed incredible speed throughout the weeks leading up to the race and in the race itself, especially considering the fact that he was considered a “rookie”.

Alonso may have his work cut out for him this year, however. Since 2017, IndyCar has changed the aero kits on the cars, which proved to be an issue for many top drivers during last year’s race.

Many drivers spun into the wall, so it may take a little more getting used to this time around for Alonso. But if his performance in the 2017 Indy 500 is any sign of what’s to come in the 2019 Indy 500, I have confidence that he will be able to come to grips with this new IndyCar quickly and look like a seasoned veteran on race day.

Lets say, hypothetically speaking, that Alonso wins the Indy 500 this year and becomes the second driver ever to win the Triple Crown. If this happens, I don’t see him racing in the Indy 500 again.

However, I do see him jumping around to different series to race in specific races. Alonso is obviously interested in racing in other series along with the World Endurance Championship and IndyCar, especially since his future in the World Endurance Championship is up in the air. With his name and resume, he can race in any race he wants, as he would have no issues trying to get teams to give him a car.

My guess is that Alonso will try his hand at NASCAR for the Daytona 500. This would be the obvious choice for him if he isn’t driving in any other series on a full-time basis, especially given the fact that he did a seat swap with seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson at Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain right after the 2018 Formula 1 season ended.

I can totally see Alonso getting a ride with a top-tier team for the Daytona 500 at some point in the near future.

Alonso has a very rare and unique opportunity that most drivers will never have. He has an opportunity to expand on an already incredible resume, which includes two Formula 1 championships, two Monaco Grand Prix wins (along with 30 more Formula 1 wins), a 24 Hours of Le Mans victory with Toyota Gazoo Racing and a 24 Hours of Daytona victory with Wayne Taylor Racing.

Alonso is about to attempt to add an Indy 500 victory to bolster his resume, and at 37 years old, although he is not considered young in the world of motorsports, he still has plenty of time to test his skills in other series.

The most impressive thing about what Alonso is doing right now is his success driving such a wide variety of cars in an era of motorsports when you rarely see driver crossovers, let alone successful driver crossovers.

Alonso has been competitive in everything that he has every driven. After years of being a force in Formula 1 when his car allowed him to be, he has also had success in prototype cars in the World Endurance Championship and in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. I believe that he will show continued success in whatever he drives, including IndyCar.

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I do not think that is not a matter of IF Fernando Alonso wins the Indianapolis 500; it is more a matter of WHEN. And when he does win the race, it will be really hard not to say, if you don’t already, that he is among the greatest race car drivers of all-time. To do what he has done in this age of motorsports across so many disciplines of racing is an incredible feat, and it deserves that level of respect.