F1 champion Fernando Alonso plans talks with McLaren boss Zak Brown over extraordinary linkup

Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso plans talks with McLaren boss Zak Brown over extraordinary partnership

Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso would make for a formidable duo

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 12 July 2026 15:30

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Fernando Alonso has revealed that he will talk to Zak Brown about a potential future partnership with four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen.

Alonso is currently driving for Aston Martin, but at 44 years of age, he may just be starting to think about what comes next after his F1 career has come to an end.

The Spaniard's longevity in F1 is such that he holds the record for the most amount of grands prix completed, and his most recent world championship title came all the way back in 2006.

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Alonso is now largely racing at the back of the pack, with Aston Martin struggling with reliability and performance issues in 2026.

But the Spaniard also has pedigree in other racing series, and has previously suggested that he fancies another crack at iconic endurance race 24 Hours of Le Mans, having won that race in 2018 and 2019.

Both he and Verstappen have hinted that they would like to team up to try and achieve victory at Le Mans, in what would be a formidable driver pairing.

Now, Alonso has issued an update on whether he and the Dutchman are any closer to getting a Le Mans drive sorted.

Would Alonso race for McLaren again?

Former McLaren driver Alonso joked with media at the British Grand Prix: "I don't know if Zak has the budget for it. I'll talk to him."

McLaren are returning to the top class of prototype endurance racing with a factory hypercar entry at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2027, and that hypercar was debuted at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this weekend by Lando Norris.

Brown has said that it is his goal to claim the triple crown of motorsport as McLaren boss, which is why they opted to pull out of Formula E and instead focus on a World Endurance Championship entry.

But despite his history with the McLaren team across multiple different series, Alonso also suggested that any run at Le Mans success would likely be with his current team Aston Martin, driving their Valkyrie hypercar.

"It's unlikely," he said about a McLaren entry. "Especially if I stay with the team, there's a good chance I'll do it first with the Valkyrie."

F1 McLaren Fernando Alonso Zak Brown