F1 News: Why you should NEVER shake hands with Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso, MexicanGP, 2025, generic — Photo: © IMAGO

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Why you should NEVER shake hands with F1 champion Fernando Alonso

Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso has been involved in a hilarious video

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Monday 2 February 2026 14:27

A hilarious video posted by the official F1 social media account has revealed why you should never shake hands with two-time world champion Fernando Alonso.

44-year-old Alonso is gearing up for his 23rd season in F1, welcoming in yet another regulations overhaul to get his head around.

He is hoping that his Aston Martin team have mastered the new regulations to give him a chance of claiming a first world championship title since 2006, with the highly ambitious team recently having acquired design legend Adrian Newey.

Article continues under video

At last week's pre-season testing event in Barcelona, Alonso managed to put in a full day of running in the AMR26 on the Friday, the first time he has driven a Newey-designed F1 car during an official F1 test.

And it was his arrival at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya that was the biggest story on Friday, with fans desperate to see what a Newey-Alonso partnership looks like having somehow eluded each other for the last 25 years.

But fans should have been wary of his arrival to the circuit on Friday, with F1 sharing a rather unnerving moment showing Alonso arriving at a race weekend last year.

Alonso can be seen wiping away something runny from the shoulder of his jacket with his right hand, before cheekily smiling into the camera and going to shake the hand of somebody at the track with that same right hand.

The hilarious video has been posted on F1's official X account, and has so far amassed over 1.3million views.

Can Aston Martin help Alonso challenge for more victories?

Now 44 years old, Alonso's hopes of a third world championship title may be fading away, but he could still claim a 33rd career grand prix victory.

Alonso has not won a race since the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix, but does have a contract that runs until the end of this season, and may even go on beyond that.

The Spaniard has said that, if Aston Martin provide him with a car that's fighting for race wins in 2026, he'll be happy to retire, but if they're still struggling for top 10 finishes, he may well carry on beyond that, potentially giving even more time for him to claim that 33rd career victory.

His first priority in 2026, however, will be to get himself back onto the podium. He has not achieved a grand prix podium since 2023, when he featured on the podium eight times.

F1 Aston Martin Fernando Alonso