EX-FORMULA 1 driver Fernando Alonso has scooped up the Daytona 24-Hour race on his second attempt, showing there is life in the legend beyond the Grand Prix circuit.
The Asturias-born former McLaren racer had been hopeful of a Daytona International Speedway win in 2018, but brake failure on his United Autosports car scuppered his chances, leaving him finishing 38th.
Showing he could have done it in the absence of last year's breakdown, Alonso stormed to victory yesterday (Sunday) at the end of the round-the-clock challenge along with his team-mates Jordan Taylor, Renger van der Zande and Kamui Kobayashi.
His spectacular performance started when he took over the wheel from Taylor in ninth position and shot straight to first, despite torrential rain which had at one point forced organisers to postpone the race for two hours.
Team Wayne Taylor Racing had opted for Alonso to drive the last leg to make up for any ground lost, which turned out to be the right tactic – his eleventh-hour neck-and-neck battle with Felipe Nasr ended when the latter aquaplaned two laps from the end.
Alonso is now only the third ex-Formual 1 driver in the history of the Daytona 24-Hour race to win it, after Phil Hill in 1964 and Mario Andretti in 1972.
With two F1 world championships under his belt and a long run of unsuccessful seasons blighted by car problems, Alonso retired from the main arena at the end of 2018 to focus on endurance.
His number one goal now is to carry off the so-called motorsport 'triple crown' – the Monaco Grand Prix, which he won during his F1 days, the Le Mans 24-Hour, which he scooped up last year, and the Indianapolis 500, which he was forced to retire from last year due to mechanical problems.
If Alonso wins the Indy 500 this coming May, he will be only the second in history to do so, after the UK's Graham Hill.
Photograph by the Daytona International sponsors, Rolex 24 Hours
