WEC: Alonso Creates History In Silverstone, Button Backs Decision To Quit F1

Fernando Alonso created history Sunday when he became the first Formula 1 world champion to win the Silverstone six-hour race in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) to make it three wins out of three for the season.

The Spaniard is driving in the WEC championship alongside his F1 commitments with McLaren this season. He admitted it was the lure of winning the LeMans 24-hour race that drew him to the championship, but after he won the race in France he is now targeting winning the title.

Alonso and his Toyota Racing teammates Sebastian Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima are comfortably leading the championship after having won the opening three races of the season. Their first victory came in Spa, Belgium, and they followed it up with a win at LeMans and on Sunday completed the hat-trick at Silverstone.

The Toyota team’s two cars were again in a league of their own in the LMP1 field and the battle swayed from one team to the other during the course of the race. But it was Buemi, who took the lead from Kamui Kobayashi with 48 minutes left on the clock and take the win with a margin of 19 seconds.

The next six-hour race in the WEC championship is in Fuji, Japan — the championship leading team’s home race — and they will be keen to continue their dominance over the rest of the field. Alonso, meanwhile, will return to his F1 duties with the Belgian Grand Prix coming up on Aug. 26.

The 37-year-old Spaniard’s future in motorsport is a hotly discussed topic at the moment after he announced he will be leaving F1 at the end of the 2018 season. Alonso is yet to decide his next destination, but his former teammate Jenson Button believes it is the best decision Alonso has made.

The British driver, who called time on his F1 career at the end of the 2016 season, is certain Alonso will continue racing in another category, and admits his decision to leave the door open for a return is the right one.

Button also quit F1 with the option of returning after a year off, but eventually decided to call time on his career in the sport to focus on other forms of motor racing. He is certain if McLaren returned to winning ways in the near future Alonso will be back behind the wheel of an F1 car.

“I said to him he’s finally made the right decision. He’s woken up and smelled the coffee, as we say,” Button said ahead of the WEC race in Silverstone on Sunday, as quoted on Planet F1. “It’s always down to the individual when they choose to leave Formula 1. He’s done the same thing as what I chose to do, leave but leave it open for one year after to go back.

“I think that’s the right option to do. But if the McLaren’s quick and it’s winning races, he’ll be back in Formula 1,” the former McLaren driver added.