Formula 1: Fernando Alonso hints at 2021 return

Fernando Alonso may have retired from Formula 1 at the end of the 2018 season, but there has been speculation that he will return. Now he himself has hinted at a return in 2021.

Two-time Formula 1 champion Fernando Alonso retired from full-time competition after the 2018 season, his 17th season in the sport and fifth driving for McLaren.

In the 38-year-old Spaniard’s second stint at McLaren, which began in the 2015 season, he did not have much success, finishing no higher than fifth place in an individual race and finishing no higher than 10th in the driver standings. In 77 starts over the course of these four seasons, he finished just 47 races.

Alonso has still been involved in other forms of racing following his successful Formula 1 career, a career that included 32 victories, good for sixth place on the all-time wins list.

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He competed in the 2018-19 FIA World Endurance Championship, and he has competed in the last two runnings of the 24 Hours of Daytona. He attempted to compete in the Indianapolis 500 for a second time this year, but he ultimately failed to qualify.

A victory in this race would make him just the second driver to win all three races of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, as he is a two-time Monaco Grand Prix winner and a two-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner as well. Only Graham Hill has ever won all three races.

But ever since Alonso retired from Formula 1, there has been speculation that he will still return at some point.

Now Alonso himself has stated that he could very well return in 2021 when the new rules and regulations, which could change the horizon of the sport from a competition standpoint for the foreseeable future, are introduced.

Alonso made this revelation in an interview with Sky Sports during the qualifying session for the 2019 season finale, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, at Yas Marina Circuit.

"“I’m doing Dakar in January which is a big challenge and next year hopefully Indy is in the plan again. I’ll try and do a little bit better than this year! We will keep it open in the future, maybe Formula One in 2021, maybe hyper car in the WEC [World Endurance Championship.] I think in 2021 that is the reason why I keep open the possibilities. Maybe things mix up with the new rules so let’s see if an opportunity comes.”"

In addition to Alonso referencing the fact that the 2021 season is appealing for a return due to the new regulations, the 2020 grid is officially full, as Williams became the 10th and final team to confirm their driver lineup for next year by confirming Nicholas Latifi as the replacement for Robert Kubica. So his statement makes sense, as the 2021 season is the earliest season in which he could return.

Will the long-speculated return of the retired Fernando Alonso to Formula 1 finally actually happen in the 2021 season, or has the two-time world champion already driven his last race in the series?