Bombshell Fernando Alonso and Red Bull talks revealed this year

Fernando Alonso was “testing the market” in preliminary talks with Red Bull this year, Christian Horner admitted.

Alonso and Red Bull’s flirtations over the years have been well-documented but, until now, it wasn’t known that they made contact in 2024.

Red Bull had Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez under contract at the beginning of this season when Alonso made enquiries.

“Well, at that time, Sergio's contract hadn't been extended,” Horner explained.

“So as Fernando is a seasoned operator, you know, he always wants to know all of his options.

“Between him and his manager or advisor of many years, Flavio Briatore, they're always, you know, testing the market.

“It just shows how hungry and competitive he is. He's still delivering at 43 years of age.

“He's still in great shape and it just shows that age is just a number.

“He's still a very, very capable grand prix driver and given the tools, I'm sure he'd be at the front.”

Alonso instead opted to pen a new deal with Aston Martin which ties him to the team until the end of 2026.

It means the two-time Formula 1 champion may end his career without ever representing Red Bull, despite a series of near-misses.

Horner detailed the times he came close to signing Alonso.

“He's a formidable competitor. At the end of his McLaren stint, the first one in 2008, I remember going to Madrid and pushing to get him in the car,” Horner said.

“We wanted to do a two-year deal, and he was only prepared to sign for one year.

“And we were convinced he had a Ferrari contract in his back pocket at that point. So we didn't get to a deal.

“And had he come to us in 2009, maybe things could have looked slightly differently.

“And even halfway through the 2009 season, he was convinced if he got in our car, he could still win the championship that year. So that was that point.

“We then had a conversation… I remember meeting with him with Adrian Newey in the back of a hire car at Spa Airport.

“I think that was around 2011, ‘11 or ’12, about coming across from Ferrari and then even as early as the beginning of this year.

“So it's incredible the longevity that he's had, the competitiveness that he has, and the statistics for the talent that he has and the ability he has.

“Two world championships don't do him justice. He should have won more than that.”