Who is Fernando Alonso?

Fernando Alonso Díaz is a Spanish racing driver who is currently competing for Alpine in Formula One. 

Described as one of the most accomplished drivers in F1 history, Alonso was born in Oviedo, Spain in July 1981. 

He started motor racing when he was a child, winning several amateur titles in junior divisions. His F1 journey began as a test driver for Minardi. Two years later, he became an official driver and it’s fair to say, he took the sporting world by storm. 

In 2005, Alonso won his first world title with the Renault team, becoming (at that time), the youngest Formula One world champion. A year later, he won his second F1 title at the Brazil Grand Prix, continuing his successful streak with Renault. 

He later went on to join the McLaren and Ferrari teams, a period which saw the sporting idol involved in controversial title fights with other drivers. 

Aside from F1, Alonso is a founding investor in fashion lifestyle brand Kimoa, which he launched in 2017. 

To find out more about the story of one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time, watch Yahoo UK’s explainer video.