Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso will leave Formula One at the end of the season, amid rumors that he would move to the IndyCar category in the United States.
Alonso’s team, McLaren, confirmed that in 2019 the Spaniard will not continue in F1, in which he has spent 17 seasons.
Lately versions circulated that Alonso could be incorporated into the IndyCar category by the hand of McLaren.
The Spaniard raced the Indianapolis 500 this year and was in the fight until his engine failed.
Alonso has 32 victories in F1, 22 pole positions and 97 podiums. He was twice champion and three times runner-up.
But this season he never finished higher than fifth and is ninth in the standings with 45 points, compared to 213 for leader Lewis Hamilton.
The Mercedes of Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas (4th) and the Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel (2nd) and Kimi Raikkonen (3rd) monopolize the first four places.
The pilot issued a statement in which he did not talk about his future, limiting himself to saying that he has never been so happy as now and that he is ready to start new adventures. AP