"I have sacrificed a lot for F1" - Fernando Alonso opens up on the sacrifices he has made for his Formula 1 career

Fernando Alonso has opened up on the trials and tribulations of being an F1 driver and the amount of sacrifices he has made. The Spaniard debuted in 2001 and has been part of the grid for over two decades now. During this time, he has run at the front of the grid, won titles, been part of controversies, and even left teams unceremoniously.

However, Alonso is still in F1 and is driving at a very high level. Not only that, the Aston Martin driver is part of a team with which he secured multiple podiums this season. He was part of Alpine for the last two seasons but when it appeared that he was at a crossroads and not getting a deal done with the team, he decided to switch.

The switch meant Alonso taking the gamble to move from Alpine (with Esteban Ocon as his teammate) to Aston Martin where he would line up alongside Lance Stroll. The success that he has had with his new team this season has been tremendous. When questioned in a Q&A feature on Aston Martin's website about the sacrifices he's made, the Spaniard admitted it had been tough.

Alonso admitted that he was a family man but being part of F1 means leaving a lot of things to one side and committing to the sport. Making it clear that he did not have any regret, the Spaniard said:

"Of course. You make sacrifices, and sometimes you're aware of those when you're making them and sometimes you don't realize until five years later. That might be things you'd like to do, or family and friends you don't see as often as you would like. I'm a very family-oriented person."

"I love to spend time with my family. At this time of my life, I thought I'd already have a family and kids, all these kinds of things, and I found myself at 42 without any kids yet. At the same time, I'm doing what I love to do. I'm doing what I'm the best at doing – and I've never tried anything other than motorsport. So, when I look in the mirror in the morning, I'm happy with who I am and what I'm doing. I have sacrificed a lot for F1, but I have no regrets," Alonso added.

Fernando Alonso felt lucky with his decision to move to Aston Martin

The move to Aston Martin was a bit of a gamble at the time for Fernando Alonso. However, with the Spaniard racking up six podiums in the first eight races of the recently concluded season, it became clear that the gamble had well and truly worked.

When questioned how he felt about the early success, Alonso replied that he felt lucky because one cannot guarantee success in F1.

"I was super happy. I felt very lucky with the decision. In Formula One, you never have a crystal ball to anticipate what is going to happen the following year – but when you make the decision, change teams, and then suddenly you're fighting for podiums, this is one of the best feelings," he explained.

Alonso will be hoping to have an even bigger improvement in the 2024 F1 season after laying a strong foundation this year.