Written by Mar Martínez, Edited by Simran Kanthi
After the tribute paid to the Spanish double World Champion at the Marina Bay Circuit during the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix for breaking the record for most race starts in F1 history, Fernando Alonso yet again breaks a new record, even if it was only for a few moments. Alonso, now, has the longest time gap between the first time leading a race to the latest one. This happened on Lap 8 of the 2022 Japanese Grand Prix when the front runners pitted to change to Intermediate tyres from the Wets, bumping Alonso up to 1st from 6th. He went on to lead a single lap before turning to the pits.
The first time he ever led a race was during the 2003 Malaysian Grand Prix where he secured the first podium of his career finishing in third place. From that day in Malaysia to the 2022 Japanese Grand Prix, it has been 19 years, six months, and 16 days.
The previous record holder was the great Michael Schumacher with a time gap of 19 years, one month, and nine days from the 1992 Belgian Grand Prix to the 2011 Japanese Grand Prix.
Behind them is Kimi Raikkonen, although his numbers are much lower, 16 years and three months to the last time he led a race at the 2018 US Grand Prix. Of the active drivers, Lewis Hamilton occupies the fourth place with 15 years, five months, and 17 days.
At 41 years old, Fernando Alonso is one of the most prolific drivers of the sport and continues to break records. There could be many left to beat, and he has no intention of leaving F1 in the near future. Although he has had problems with his team this year, Alonso sees a brighter future by switching to Aston Martin next year. With this change, will we see Fernando Alonso on the podium and win races again?
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