Yet another week is threatening to pass with Fernando Alonso’s future still unclear.
Most insiders are utterly convinced that the Spaniard is heading to McLaren-Honda, amid reports the 33-year-old is even scheduled to visit Woking this week to sign what is expected to be the most lucrative deal in F1 history. But Alonso has posted photos to his Facebook and Twitter accounts of what is obviously a post-Brazil break in Dubai, some 7,000 kilometres from the UK. “Sunny in Woking today!” one of his Facebook followers commented cheekily.
At the same time, Ferrari is also continuing the apparent contractual impasse with its number 1 driver. New president Sergio Marchionne, pressed by the media about Alonso this week, is quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport: “I do not talk about the drivers, that is the task of the team management.”
The uncertainty is also prolonging the wait for Jenson Button, who could be the existing McLaren driver who is pushed aside for Alonso and out of F1 altogether. “Hopefully soon I’ll be able to give you more info about my future,” the Briton said this week on Twitter, adding the hashtag ‘ExcitingTimes’. If his 15-year F1 career does end, it is believed 34-year-old Button will either become a full-time triathlete or switch to Le Mans prototype sports cars. Speed Week linked him with the 2015 Le Mans competitors Porsche, Toyota, Audi or Nissan. Mark Webber, who made the switch from F1 to Porsche this year, ‘tweeted’ to Button: “Matey, just sign that sports car contract and get on with it. “Be mega to have you with/against us next year,” the Australian added.
