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Fernando Alonso is now expected to re-sign with Aston Martin for 2027 or retire from F1 over rejoining Alpine, whose new Gucci title sponsorship may actually be to blame.
Question marks have hovered over Alonso all year, as the two-time F1 champion is currently due to be out of contract at Aston Martin at the end of this year. Reports have also surfaced that Alpine are considering a move for Alonso, which would mark his fourth spell in Enstone.
Alonso enjoyed two spells in Enstone across the team’s time as the works Renault crew from 2003-2006 and 2008-2009, before later returning from 2021-2022 after they rebranded as Alpine. It was also amid their period as Renault that Alonso lifted his titles in 2005 and 2006.
But while it is now said that Alpine are interested in signing Alonso for 2027, a fourth spell in Enstone appears very unlikely. Especially after Alonso revealed ahead of the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix that “I have a contract” with Aston Martin for 2027, and they are his only option.
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Fernando Alonso is unlikely to rejoin Alpine due to Gucci CEO Luca de Meo’s return
Alonso may have been forgiven for deciding to leave Aston Martin given their struggles since the start of the 2026 F1 regulations era. But the Spaniard wants to see the Silverstone squad get back on track, so he will either sign his contract to drive in 2027 or adopt a different role.
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That is according to MARCA, which reports that Alonso will either re-sign with Aston Martin for 2027 (or even 2028), or become an ambassador for the F1 team while racing elsewhere.
It is simply a question of whether Alonso sees enough hope with Aston Martin’s car and the changes to the engine regulations that F1 has already committed to for the 2027 campaign.
Alonso returning to Alpine for 2027 ‘does not quite add up’ for several reasons, such as their expected performance drop-off in year two of F1’s new regulations and also their Gucci title sponsorship deal that will start next season as it means a return to Enstone for Luca de Meo.
Gucci will replace BWT as Alpine’s title sponsor from 2027 as part of a three-year deal worth $50-60m (£37.5-45m) per season. But Alonso is understood to be opposed to working with De Meo again, after the executive steered the Alpine ship through his last tenure in Enstone.
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De Meo took over as the CEO of Kering – the parent company of Gucci – in July 2025, after he left his role as the CEO of the Renault Group. The Italian was the person behind Renault’s call to rebrand the group’s F1 team as Alpine from the 2021 season, when Alonso returned.
Alonso revealed at the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix ahead of his first race for Alpine that he had “talked” to De Meo before signing for the team. The Spaniard also shared back then that he had been convinced by the Italian’s “vision for the future of F1 and the commitment for F1”.
But Alonso’s relationship with De Meo seemingly soured through his two years with Alpine, before shocking the team by signing with Aston Martin for the 2023 season in August 2022. When the dust settled, De Meo admitted that Alpine did not treat Alonso like he deserved.
De Meo admitted to Car and Driver in 2025: “He’s an incredible guy, and he slipped through our fingers at Alpine, and it was our mistake.
“Perhaps we didn’t treat him as we should have, but we still have a very good relationship. I hope he succeeds at Aston Martin, because he deserves it.”
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