Motorsport story by Vinnie Mitchell, Tue, 20 Dec 2005 08:56:01 GMT


Fernando Alonso, World Champion of 2005 Formula One, will be switching his loyalties to McLaren in the 2007 Formula One season.

This announcement came on December 19th, which is five days after Vodafone joined forces with McLaren Mercedes.

Ron Dennis, Team Principal and Chairman and CEO of the McLaren Group said: “It's great that our strong belief in the strength and competitiveness of the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes package has been further endorsed by the World Champion.”

He added: “To be able to announce Vodafone as only McLaren's third title partner in more than 30 years and Fernando's employment within only a few days is fantastic news for the team, our Partners, Formula One and the fans.” McLaren's bagged its last world title only in 1999 when Mika Hakkinen won.

The 24-year-old was instrumental in Renault gaining its first world title. He will be with them till the 2006 campaign. Alonso made it clear that he would be giving his best when he races for Renault in 2006.

He said: “I'm pleased that we are able to make this announcement already now as it will
allow my current team and I to focus 100% on defending the world championships next year.”

Renault president Patrick Faure and team boss Flavio Briatore are on the lookout for a replacement for Alonso. According to the grapevine, it could be Heikki Kovalainen.

Dennis is confident that this announcement will have no effect on performance of his 2006 team, which includes Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya. This is because one of them will have to make way when Alonso arrives.

When Alonso signed the deal, it also ended rumours that Michael Schumacher would be joining McLaren when his contract with Ferrari expires in 2006. However, should Raikkonen opt for Ferrari then Michael can only hope to join Renault in 2007.

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