Alonso criticises new fans: 'They don't know much about Formula 1'

Alonso and F1 fans

After two years of absence, Alonso returned to F1 in 2021. While he struggled in the beginning, he has been completely at ease since the second half of last season. The Spaniard wanted to show that he still had value for the sport, he told The Race.

According to Alonso, the fans are very different from years ago. ''There are new fans and in a way – and I don’t want to lack respect to them – but they don’t know much about Formula 1. They just are more like a football kind of fan, where they just follow the results, whoever is winning does the best. And whoever is last is not Formula 1 level.''

Shaky judgement

The two-time world champion says those fans do not understand that much in F1 depends on the performance of the car. It's also much more about the hype. ''When you do a good weekend, you seem like God. And when you do a bad weekend, you are too old – or you are too young or whatever. I think now the fans, they are just watching the race immediately, they have a feeling and then switch off until the next Sunday. There is not a proper culture of Formula 1 anymore.''

Alonso is having a strong season in 2022. He qualified on the front row of the grid for the Canadian Grand Prix and was fifth at Silverstone. However, the Spaniard's season has also been characterised by bad luck, stoppages and grid penalties, which have prevented him from realising his full potential.

This makes it difficult for Alonso, who has to prove his worth to Alpine in this season. The 2005 and 2006 world champion has an expiring contract and Oscar Piastri is an Alpine junior ready to start his F1 career. The French stable seems to want to hold on to Alonso, but a signature has still not been made.