Fernando Alonso Turns 41 At The Hungarian GP: Who Is The Oldest Driver To Win F1?

Fernando Alonso (Instagram @fernadoalo_official)

JAKARTA - Fernando Alonso returns to the place of his first Formula 1 victory in Hungary. There, he won the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix when he was just 22 years old and became F1's youngest winner at the time.

Fast forward 19 years, Alonso returns to Hungary, racing for the same team albeit under a different guise in Alpine form.

The team also claimed their first win as Alpine last year in Hungary when France's Esteban Ocon took advantage of a first-round melee that saw some of the front runners out.

If Alonso can repeat the success of his teammates, he will join the exclusive list of drivers who won it in his 40s. The last rider to do so was Nigel Mansell at the 1994 Australian Grand Prix aged 41 and three months.

At last week's French Grand Prix, Alonso broke the record for most laps in Formula 1 completing 18,672 laps since his debut.

He is also the most experienced rider on the grid with 19 seasons. The record equals the achievements of Rubens Barrichello, Kimi Raikkonen and Michael Schumacher.

Alonso could break another record this season. If all goes to plan, the two-time world champion will surpass Raikkonen as the rider with the most number of races at the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix with 350 races to his name.

It is also important to remember that Alonso spent two seasons away from the sport to pursue his other interests.

Despite reaching the age of 41, Alonso has made no secret of his desire to win a third world title. However, the dominance of Ferrari and Red Bull made that expectation held back for at least another year.

It's hard to imagine F1 without Alonso, but can Hungary give the Spaniard one last chance for the driver to retire with pride.