At 43 years of age, Fernando Alonso is the oldest driver in the Formula 1 field — and he isn’t showing any signs of stepping back any time soon.

But what will happen when that day comes? And how will Alonso know? The Aston Martin driver has addressed that future in a recent episode of the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast.

When Fernando Alonso knows it’s time to leave F1

Of all the drivers that will start the 2025 Formula 1 season, Fernando Alonso is by far the most experienced.

With a Grand Prix career dating back to 2001, the two-time World Champion will have been competing for longer than several other drivers on the field have been alive.

And he hasn’t just succeeded in Formula 1. Alonso holds a World Endurance Championship title and two victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as the 24 Hours of Daytona. He tried his hand at the Indianapolis 500, and he’s competed in the Dakar Rally.

But when will he know it’s time to step back?

More on Fernando Alonso’s legacy:

👉 Revealed: Fernando Alonso’s secret weapon in battles with F1 rivals

👉 Ranking Fernando Alonso’s F1 career moves from worst to best

In a conversation with the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, Fernando Alonso maintained that, heading into 2025, he still feels fit, healthy, and motivated — and his motivation will only likely grow as his Aston Martin team begins wind-tunnel testing at its own facility, and as legendary designer Adrian Newey joins the team.

Still, there were challenging moments in 2024.

“There were a couple of races that I was not maybe comfortable with the car, or I was not super motivated,” Alonso admitted to the Chequered Flag.

He specifically pinpointed the two triple-header weekends that ended the season: Austin, Mexico, and Brazil, followed soon after by Las Vegas, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.

“When you are not super motivated or you are not fighting for anything in the championship, you are a little bit down on energy,” he said.

But that wasn’t all.

“It has been definitely not as we expected or as we predicted. We had high expectations after the 2023 campaign, and we started strong at the beginning of the year, but then it seems that we were not able to improve the car throughout the season,” Alonso expained.

“We were in the midfield for most of 2024, and at the end of the season, even a little bit worse than the midfield.

“All in all, I think disappointed in some of the phases of the campaign, but we ended up fifth in the constructors’ which was the minimum requirement. ”

Further, the car suffered from seemingly chronic lack of stability in his Aston Martin.

“It was a disconnection of the car,” he explained to the Chequered Flag podcast. “Front and rear axle were not really working at the same time in the same phase of the corner.

“So at the entry of the corner, maybe one of the two axles, they were working. One would switch off mid-corner. Maybe the other axle was doing the opposite.

“When you go through the lap and through different corners, and both axles are doing different things, and they are not talking to each other, the car is really difficult to drive.”

Still, there was much for Alonso to be proud of.

“It’s difficult to put 2024 as a bad year in my book,” he said. “We completed buildings two and three of the factory on the new campus, and we hired Adrian Newey.”

>He also dramatically outscored teammate Lance Stroll, and his performance was almost solely responsible for Aston’s fifth-place finish in the Constructors’ championship.

“I’m happy, but I don’t need those stats to really motivate myself,” he said.

But what happens when that changes?

“I think my self-confidence will be always there until there is one day that I don’t feel comfortable in the car; I feel slower than my teammates, or slower than what I think is possible with the car,” he said.

“If that date arrives, probably I will raise my hand and I will stop racing because I will not enjoy anymore.”

When will that date come? It’s hard to say — but until then, we can expect to see Fernando Alonso competing on the Formula 1 grid.

Read next: From ‘GP2 engine’ to ‘karma’ – 10 of our favourite Fernando Alonso team radio messages