Taking a veiled jab at Red Bull and Mercedes, Fernando Alonso said that he “felt the most wanted” at Aston Martin. 

Before the upcoming 2024 season, the seasoned Spaniard was frequently connected to two of the leading F1 teams. However, he decided to stay put and signed a new multi-year contract with the Silverstone-based squad on Thursday.

Alonso was considered a strong candidate to take the role of Sergio Perez at Red Bull and Lewis Hamilton, who was heading to Ferrari, at Mercedes. However, both formidable teams were willing to wait a little while longer before making an official offer to the Spaniard.

With his new contract announced more than a week before the season’s fifth race at the Shanghai International Circuit, Alonso made the decision to be the first mover in the 2024 driver market rather than waiting for Max Verstappen’s future to become clearer.

Alonso stated, “I felt the most wanted in Aston Martin,” after agreeing to his new conditions. While there was a clear desire to work together in Aston, which was also my desire, the other chats were only light, and perhaps more time was needed.”

The two-time world champion added that his decision to go was influenced by the 2026 technical regulation changes as well as his impending partnership with Honda. “I won’t lie, it was a crucial point,” he continued.

“It didn’t make sense for me to commit to a one-year project.” It wasn’t that I had a one-year offer from somewhere else or anything; it was just During our initial meetings, I made it very evident to Aston that the most alluring aspect of this project is everything we are creating.

“I felt that in order to start a new endeavor, I had to actually enter new regulations. They chose to remain at Aston because they have a partnership with Aramco, the largest and greatest partner in the world, through which they will remain with Honda through 2026.

“The technical team now consists of amazing, gifted individuals who will gain from Silverstone’s new facilities and wind tunnel. There were numerous reasons why 2026 with Aston was quite desirable.”

Toto Wolff, the head of Mercedes, will have additional challenges as a result of Alonso’s choice. Max Verstappen and the Aston Martin driver were on the Austrian’s shortlist to succeed his outgoing seven-time champion, and neither of them is likely to be donning black overalls when the 2025 season gets begin.