Overshadowed, Alonso still the best driver in F1
The 2008 F1 finale at Interlagos was one of the most exciting races in the sport’s history, even outdoing the 1986 championship fight in Australia between Nelson Piquet, Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost. For once, Formula One exuded excitement and grace.
Lost in the excitement of Felipe Massa’s win and Lewis Hamilton’s historic championship was the latest sign that Fernando Alonso stands above them all.
Fomula One my be in the midst of a financial crisis, but it is in another golden age of driving talent. Alonso, Hamilton, Massa, Kimi Raikkonen, Sebastian Vettel, Robert Kubica and Nico Rosberg all bring excitement and talent to the track. But out of that bunch it is only Alonso and Vettel who have proven the can take inferior equipment and win with it.
The job that Alonso has done at Renault this year is proof that he was not diminished by his sojourn at McLaren. The Spaniard has led a talented but broken team from the bottom half of the field to the top three in the span of a season where the top two teams developed their cars at an unprecedented pace.
So, while observers fall all over themselves to predict multiple titles for Hamilton, it is two-time champion Alonso who is own track to add more trophies to his cabinet because there is no better driver in the sport today.