Alonso to Retire From F1 at End of Season

Double world champion Fernando Alonso will retire from Formula One at the end of the season, his team McLaren said in a statement on Tuesday.

The 37-year-old Spaniard is competing in his 17th Formula One season and his fifth with McLaren, and has been widely tipped to race in the Indianapolis 500 next year as he attempts to win the ‘Triple Crown of Motorsport’, Reuters reported.

Alonso, a double Monaco Grand Prix winner, won the Le Mans 24 Hours on his debut with Toyota in June this year and is ninth in the Formula One drivers’ championship standings.

“After 17 wonderful years in this amazing sport, it’s time for me to make a change and move on,” the racing driver said. “There are still several grands prix to go this season, and I will take part in them with more commitment and passion than ever.”Alonso thanked Formula One Chief Executive Chase Carey and the sport’s owner Liberty Media Corp for trying to get him to change his mind and left the door open on a possible return to the circuit.

“I made this decision some months ago and it was a firm one. Nevertheless, I would like to sincerely thank Chase Carey and Liberty Media for the efforts made to change my mind,” he said.