Incredible Alonso story reveals he almost got McLaren team members FIRED

Fernando Alonso, McLaren, 2016, generic — Photo: © IMAGO

Incredible Alonso story reveals he almost got McLaren team members FIRED

Fernando Alonso raced for McLaren in 2007 and again in 2015-2018

Originally written by Sam Cook. This version is a translation.

Sunday 11 January 2026 17:00

A former McLaren F1 star has revealed an outrageous story about Fernando Alonso's time with the team.

Alonso raced for McLaren in the 2007 season, off the back of having won two consecutive world titles with Renault in 2006 and 2007.

But his move didn't go to plan, with Alonso rather publicly falling out with the Woking-based outfit as the season went on, and sparking a fierce rivalry with rookie team-mate Lewis Hamilton which still to this day threatens to boil over.

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Hamilton had joined the team as a 22-year-old rookie, and being a two-time champion Alonso expected number one driver status. However, the two stars were embroiled in a fierce championship battle, finishing level on points and missing out by a single point to eventual victor Kimi Raikkonen.

And there was also the off-track drama that followed the 2007 season, with the spygate scandal gripping the sport and leading to an even more fractured relationship between Alonso and McLaren.

Now, Alonso's former racing engineer Slade has revealed an incredible story about how Alonso tried to get the McLaren team on his side in 2007, alleging that he tried to pay staff members €1000 each.

"I went to the garage, got the guys and said: ‘Can we all just gather? Fernando wants to have a quick word with us,’" Slade began in an appearance on Peter Windsor's YouTube channel.

"And he appeared at the back of the garage with a bunch of envelopes and said: ‘At Renault, I used to like to share in my winnings with my guys on my car and it’s not something I’ve done at McLaren so far, but I’d just like to show my appreciation for you being on my car and doing such a great job.’

"He handed these envelopes out and we opened them and I think there was 1000 euros in each envelope. I was kind of gobsmacked.

"I think we were just sort of nonplussed, we didn’t really know what to say. So we just said: ‘That’s really kind, thanks. Thanks very much.’

"And he was very humble. He was just saying: ‘No, I really appreciate your help.’"

McLaren staff almost sacked for Alonso generosity

Slade continued with his story: "We went off and did our thing and, a little while later, Dave Ryan came into the motorhome with a face of thunder.

"And he’s like: ‘What the hell just happened in the garage?' 'Well, Fernando just did that.’ And he said: ‘Yeah, I thought that’s what’s happened. Basically, you’ve got to give us all the money. You’ve got to give the money to me. You’ve got to give the money to the team. It’s completely outrageous, we can’t have that in this team.’

"I was like: ‘Oh, ok. Really sorry. Didn’t know that.’ “And he basically said: ‘Anyone that doesn’t hand their money back is going to get sacked.’

"It was made known and everyone gave their envelopes back. I believe the envelopes were basically given to back to Fernando and he was told never to do it again."

It's one of many incredible stories that have come out about Alonso's tumultuous 2007 season with McLaren, including Spanish journalist Antonio Lobato recently suggesting that Alonso was scared to drive the car after he'd been arguing with the McLaren team.

F1 Lewis Hamilton McLaren Fernando Alonso