Alpine F1 star Fernando Alonso called 'Godfather' by Renault CEO; here is why

Two time Driver's Champion Fernando Alonso made his grand return to F1 this season after being out of the sport for the past two years. The Spaniard's return did not go as planned after a sandwich wrapper prevented him from finishing the Bahrain Grand Prix. Alonso and Alpine F1 will hope for a better result this weekend at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

Renault CEO refers to Fernando Alonso as 'Godfather'

Being a double World Champion, Fernando Alonso is undoubtedly one of the sport's greats. Alpine F1 (earlier Renault) are counting on his expertise and experience to turn the team's fortunes around. In an interview with Top Gear, Renault CEO Luca de Meo said, "Renault is Fernando’s home, but I want him to use his experience to help us all grow. He has a different role to the one from 15 years ago. He’s the 'Godfather' of everybody. The only thing I’m asking him is to help us become a top team because it’s about attitude and mindset. And he has it."

Fernando Alonso F1 team prospects for 2021

Even though Alpine F1 will be unable to compete at the very top in 2021, de Meo is optimistic for the 2022 season as sweeping rule changes comes into play. The Renault CEO said, "The budget cap helped. The top teams were spending two or three times what we were able to. It will help competition be stronger and that’s good for the show. Of course, we don’t want to be losers, but if it’s becoming more and more competitive this is good, there will be battles throughout the field. This is how it should be."

Fernando Alonso record

Fernando Alonso F1 team boss also complimented the Spaniard for his prowess in the sport by revealing the team's outlook for this season. "Our focus is to actually give him a car where he can have fun. And then you never know what happens in a Grand Prix, right? Maybe we need to be a little bit lucky, but we’ll be doing everything we can for him and for Esteban," he said.

Fernando Alonso record speaks for itself as the 39-year old has won 32 F1 races and two Driver's Championships. The Spaniard has also competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship and has recorded five victories for Toyota Gazoo Racing. Moreover, Alonso also won the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice, thereby moving closer to his ambition of achieving the Triple Crown of Motorsport.

The Triple Crown is an unofficial motorsport achievement where the driver wins the three most prestigious motor races in the world: Indianapolis 500, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix. The only race Alonso has failed to win is the Indianapolis 500, having had the best finish of 29th.