Fernando Alonso has paid tribute to its long-serving physiotherapist, Fabrizio Borra.
Alonso wrote on social media on Sunday to bid a public farewell to his friend and colleague, saying: “I’ll miss you, Fabri. Every day. Thank you for teaching me so much and making me a better person and athlete. My whole career with you has been the greatest good fortune I could have. Rest in peace, brother.”
Reports in Italy had claimed that Borra, 64, died in the Italian city of Forli on Sunday morning after a year-long battle with cancer.
Borra, who was born in Brescia, had worked with Alonso since the two-time F1 world campion made his debut with the Minardi team back in 2001.
He was part of Alonso’s backroom team during his two world championship wins with Renault and moved with him during his career, including spells at Ferrari, McLaren, Alpine and Aston Martin.
Borra was a familiar face in the paddock and worked with Alonso and also Michael Schumacher, who he helped recover from a broken leg he suffered in an accident at the 1999 British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Borra had also worked with MotoGP rider Andrea Dovizioso and cyclist Marco Pantani.
Meanwhile, Alonso has endured a difficult season for Aston Martin and is yet to score a single point in the opening six races. Boss Andy Cowell had admitted the team was “not a happy camp”.
When quizzed in Miami if he believe his team had developments coming that could help him challenge for points, he said: “I’m trying to do my best behind the wheel, but this is a good question for our managers.
“They know what is in the pipeline, they work really hard, we support them. But we cannot talk about the technicality of the car and the upgrades because we are not in the loop every week.”
Leave feedback about this