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Fernando Alonso misses Suzuka media day after welcoming his first child — bringing ironic full circle to his famous Schumacher quote, as Aston Martin battles on-track struggles.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso (AFP)
It’s one of Formula 1’s coldest one-liners. And now, it’s come full circle.
Back in 2005 at the Japanese Grand Prix, a young Fernando Alonso pulled off a jaw-dropping move on Michael Schumacher before delivering the now-iconic line: “I knew he’d hit the brakes. He has a wife and two kids at home.”
Two decades later, life has flipped the script.
Alonso Steps Back From Suzuka
According to BBC SportAlonso will miss Thursday’s media duties at Suzuka after arriving late due to the birth of his first child.
His team, Aston Martin F1 Team, kept things low-key, stating only that the two-time world champion was “arriving slightly later this weekend for personal family reasons.”
While the team didn’t officially confirm details, multiple reports, including the BBC’sindicate that Alonso and his partner, Melissa Jimenez, have welcomed their first baby.
“All is well, and he will be at the track in time for Friday,” the team added.
True to form, Alonso has kept things private. Yet, there’s a certain poetry here that isn’t lost on F1 fans.
The same driver who once weaponised the idea of family as hesitation is now, quite literally, in that position himself. Whether it changes anything behind the wheel is another question.
Aston Martin’s Nightmare Start Rolls On
If things are calm off-track for Alonso, they’re anything but on it.
Honda’s much-hyped return at Suzuka has quickly turned into a headache. The partnership between Aston Martin and Honda, meant to usher in a new era, has instead stumbled out of the blocks under the 2026 regulations.
The AMR26 is struggling. Badly.
Both the internal combustion engine and battery systems are underperforming, with reliability and energy management proving major concerns. Worse still, Honda engineers are yet to pinpoint the root cause of persistent vibration issues.
So while Alonso steps into fatherhood, his team steps into one of its toughest weekends yet.
March 25, 2026, 4:56 PM IST
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