Alonso talks at length!
By role
April 24 2003
A long interview appeared on this weekend’s Spanish newspaper “El País” in which he declared his views about the season, the sport and his fellow drivers. The following is the translation to some of the more interesting questions and answers:
Q. You really dream of being World Champion?
A. I do not dream, I want to be World Champion
Q. If you achieve it before 2006, you would be the younger F1 World Champion in the history.
A. Then…let’s go.
Q. So much saw Ferrari that they tried to sign you back then? And you say no. How do you say no to Ferrari?
A. It was not easy. But it wasn’t to Ferrari. It was to race in subsidiary teams (Prost). That means that if you are worth it they take you. If not, they through you to the garbage. Renault was much more confident in me. It was a long-term bet. Ferrari is now on the front, but this goes in cycles. They were 23 years without winning the title and now they have three consecutives. Let’s hope is that, a cycle. And that it ends and our moment starts.
Q. But Kimi Raikkonen is beating you. At the end is a failure. Because, when you were 14 years old, you were racing each other and you were beating him.
A. Well, I knew sooner or later that will come out. Really: in those times I probably had a better kart than he did. Now he has had the luck – so have I had a tremendous luck – of arriving to McLaren, that right now is going great. It is a quite hard rival.
Q. Some say the key to your success is that you have raced a lot.
A. And I have. I have lots of races in me. I have seen hundreds of time the start sign and also the chequered flag. People think that because I am 21 I am a rookie, but I have immense experience.
Q. You know something else besides racing cars?
A. Little else.
Q. Some may say that you are happy with your current place.
A. No way. I want more. My best virtue is that what I have done is never enough.
Q. And your worse weakness?
A. The same one.
Q. Someone in the paddock has called you a reckless driver.
A. Who?
Q. The Canadian Jacques Villeneuve said after the race that you are dangerous.
A. Yeah, right. Well, it does not affect me. If it would have been Fisichella, Trulli or Schumacher..., I would be worried. Since it comes from him it does not matter to me.
Q. Why don’t you say you are the best if you think so?
A. What do you mean I do not say it? I am the best. If I would not think like that, why should I continue? And that pilot you see there, he feels he’s the best, and the other one also, and the other one…the athlete that does not think he is the best has a tremendous deficit of self-respect.
Q. But you were a kid and Michael Schumacher was winning races. You must respect him, don’t you?
A. And I respect him. And I like him. But that does not mean anything. I do not feel less than anyone.
Q. Well, the other day in a football match he scored twice and you only once.
A. Well, do not get confused. Nobody told you that I gave him the two assist? He only had to push the ball.