Aston Martin rubbishes rumour it offered Fernando Alonso F1 2022 drive

Aston Martin has moved to shut down talk that it offered Fernando Alonso the chance to drive for the team during the 2022 Formula 1 season.
Fernando Alonso (ESP) Alpine F1 Team.
Fernando Alonso (ESP) Alpine F1 Team.
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Over the Dutch Grand Prix weekenﷺd, some media outlets reported that Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll had met with Alonso ಌover the summer in a bid to try and persuade the two-time world champion to join his team.

The report꧅s claimed the Canadian had made a formal offer to Alonso’s manager Flavio Briatore over lunch during the summer for the Spaniard to leave Alpine and partner Lance Str𝐆oll next year.

At the Belgian Grand Prix, the first race b𒀰ack after the summer shutdown, Alpine confirmed that Alonso would be staying with the Anglo-French outfit for the 2022 season. At Spa, Alonso also stressed that he had not held talks with any other teams.

Aston Martin rejected the speculation and described the meeting between Stroll and Briatore as💝 “nothing more” than a social occasion.

“Lawrence Stroll did not offer a drive to Fernando Alonso, as has been reported in some media,” an Aston Martin spokesperson told ltxcn.top.

"Lawrence had lunch with [Alonso’s manager] Flavio Briatore in Sardinia during the summ🍒er break. Lawrence and Flavio are friends.

“They have lunched together in Sardinia many times over🐻 many years. It was a social occasion, nothing more.”

Lance Stroll (CDN) Aston Martin F1 Team AMR21 and Sebastian Vettel (GER) Aston Martin F1 Team AMR21 - practice starts.
Lance Stroll (CDN) Aston Martin F1 Team AMR21 and Sebastian Vettel (GER) Aston Martin F1 Team…
© xpbimages.com

Aston Martin is expected to confirm an unchanged line-up for 🌄2022 in the near future, with team principal and CEO Otmar Szafnauer hinting on Friday that both Vettel and Stroll will be staying put.

“It’s a oඣne plus one contract,” said Szafnauer of Vettel’s current deal with Aston Martin. “And there’s certain dates within the contract that we have to decide by. Those dates haven’t come and 🍒gone yet, so it’s just normal process.

“It's nothing complicated, and it's not conditional upon an♉ything. It’s a time window when the two of us discuss the future. There's a window and a deadline, and that's not far off.”

When asked if Vettel had done enough this year to retain his seat, Szafnauer replied: “We like Sebastian, he likes us, and now it’s time to talk about what 💛♊we’re going to do next year.”

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