WOKING, England: Two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso will race for McLaren at the Indianapolis 500 on May 28 in a surprise switch that will see the Spanish driver miss the Monaco Grand Prix on the same day.
It will be Alonso’s first drive in the biggest car race in the US as he steps up his bid to win what he regards as the “Triple Crown” of motor sport: the Monaco GP, the Indianapolis 500 and the Le Mans 24 Hours race.
“It’s a tough challenge,” said Alonso, who has twice won in Monaco, “but I’m up for it.”
McLaren made the announcement on Wednesday, saying the Monaco GP will be the only Formula One race that Alonso will miss. The British-based team has not announced who will replace Alonso for the most glitzy race on the F1 calendar.
McLaren will be racing in the Indianapolis 500 for the first time in 38 years. Its entry will be a Dallara DW12 chassis, run by the Andretti Autosport team headed by Michael Andretti — a former IndyCar champion who raced in Formula One for McLaren in 1993.
Alonso will fly to Indianapolis immediately after the Spanish Grand Prix on May 14 to get in two weeks of IndyCar practice.
“I’ve never raced an IndyCar car before, and neither have I ever driven on a super-speedway, but I’m confident that I’ll get to grips with it fast,” he said.
“I’ve watched a lot of IndyCar action on TV and online, and it’s clear that great precision is required to race in close proximity with other cars on the far side of 220 mph (354 kph). I realize I’ll be on a steep learning curve.”
Andretti will have six cars in the Indianapolis 500, including Alexander Rossi, the former F1 test driver who was the surprise winner of last year’s 100th running of the classic.
The Andretti team has shown much improvement from last year, when Honda was dominated all season by Chevrolet. But Honda drivers have won the first two races of the season, and the Andretti cars have been competitive.
There had been rumblings in the paddock in Long Beach that IndyCar officials were trying to bring in a “showstopper” for this year’s race, but nothing could be confirmed. Alonso was one of the names being floated, and the pairing makes sense now that McLaren is run by Zak Brown.
Brown ran an Indianapolis-based marketing firm for years before his gradual move into Formula One. He’s often been consulted by IndyCar management on a variety of issues, and was even in talks for an official role with the series.
“Could Fernando win this year’s Indy 500?” Brown said. “Well, I wouldn’t be so silly as to make any such rash prediction, but I expect him to be in the mix.”
Alonso has not won a point after two races of the Formula One season.
Fernando Alonso to miss Monaco GP to race at Indy 500
Fernando Alonso to miss Monaco GP to race at Indy 500
Al-Qadsiah victory over Al-Khaleej tightens Saudi Pro League title race
- Brendan Rodgers’ side now sit fourth on 43 points, four behind league leaders Al-Hilal
- Points dropped by Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli on Monday blow the title race wide open
RIYADH: Matchday 20 of the Saudi Pro League concluded after what was arguably the most dramatic week of the season, both on and off the pitch.
Monday saw the winter transfer window come to a close with late twists — most notably the transfer of Karim Benzema from Al-Ittihad to Al-Hilal — alongside the highly anticipated clash between Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli. While all eyes were on that fixture, Al-Qadsiah quietly continued their unbeaten run with a 1-0 victory over Al-Khaleej, extending it to 10 matches.
With the campaign now beyond its halfway point, there is no telling who will become champion come end of the season. As things stand, Al-Hilal sit top with 47 points, followed by city rivals Al-Nassr on 46 points. In third place, Al-Ahli on 44 points, with Al-Qadsiah just behind on 43.
Al-Qadsiah’s win was anything but easy, however. Under Brendan Rodgers, one-goal victories had previously only come against against heavyweights such as Al-Nassr and Al-Ittihad. Games against Al-Riyadh, Al-Fayha, Al-Hazem and Al-Najma — all in the bottom half of the table — were won by two goals or more.
Giorgos Donis’ Al-Khaleej presented a different challenge. Finding themselves in the upper mid-table this season thanks to stellar performances from the likes of Giorgos Masouras, Joshua King and Kostas Fortounis, it was never going to be easy for Al-Qadsiah, even in the absence of Fortounis due to injury.
It seemed like the flurry of games finally took its toll on the Knight of the East, with stars Julian Quinones and Musab Al-Juwayr looking fatigued. In the 38 days since Rodgers took charge at Al-Qadsiah, the side have played 10 matches, with five more to come in the next 23 days.
Despite 18 attempts at goal, only one came to fruition. A through ball to Quinones in the 41st minute was squared to Mateo Retegui, who finished into an open net to score the only goal of the game.
Al-Qadsiah didn’t sit back for the remainder of the game, prompting Al-Khaleej to take advantage of the spaces in behind the wing-backs to launch their own offence. Saudi national team centre-back Jehad Thekri was repeatedly left exposed, but backup goalkeeper Ahmed Al-Kassar did his best to prevent Al-Khaleej from finding an equaliser.
Despite being the week which saw the title race tighten to just four points between first and fourth, this was the second-lowest scoring Saudi Pro League matchday in history, with just nine goals across the nine games. None of the 18 teams were able to score more than one goal, with half the sides going goalless this round.
Elsewhere, just minutes away at E’GO Stadium, Al-Ettifaq managed to secure a valuable 1-0 victory against this campaign’s surprise package Al-Taawoun, after a 71st minute strike from Georginio Wijnaldum.
Meanwhile, Al-Kholood ended their streak of 18 games without a draw by grabbing a point in a 0-0 draw against Damac. The point for both sides was enough to see them end the round outside the relegation zone; Al-Kholood in 14th with 16 points and Damac in 15th with 12.
Saudi Pro League action returns on Thursday, with Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal continuing their title charges against Al-Hazem and Al-Okhdood respectively. Friday will feature the game of the round, with Al-Nassr welcoming Al-Ittihad at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh.
