A few days ago, in the run-up to the Spanish Grand Prix, FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem exclaimed that he intended to discuss Fernando Alonso’s future in F1. Presumably, Alonso was in attendance.

Sulayem said that it is unacceptable to see Fernando Alonso in an uncompetitive car. The assumption, therefore, is that Sulayem intends to keep Alonso in F1 until he wins another race.

The Aston Martin–Adrian Newey–Honda partnership has failed to deliver, leaving Alonso not only on the wrong side of the grid, but also on the wrong side of the clock.

Alonso began his F1 career in 2001 and, in total, has competed in 23 seasons, excluding his 2019–2020 sabbatical. He has now competed in more than 400 races.

He won back-to-back World Championships with Renault in 2005 and 2006 and has a total of 32 race victories. His last Formula 1 victory came at the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix on May 12, 2013.

He showed his true calibre as a driver at Ferrari, where he drove like a gladiator, putting in imperious performances and winning 11 races for the team, but ultimately falling short of winning another championship.

He left Ferrari at the end of the 2014 season under a cloud of disappointment and finger-pointing. Many felt he had delivered more than Ferrari could give him.

Since 2014, he has stumbled from one team to the next, continuing to put in imperious performances while driving uncompetitive cars. He never seemed to find the optimum time to join a team and often left just before its performance improved.

That is Fernando Alonso’s F1 career: one of, if not the best, drivers of his generation, putting in 100% and delivering at almost every race, but rarely finding himself in the best team or the best car.

That’s why he remains so highly sought after, despite the reputedly difficult nature of his character. But in sport — any sport — the clock is ticking from the moment you start. It is, therefore, a short-lived career.

Twenty-three seasons in F1 is rare. Even highly rated drivers might get ten years if they are lucky. Many come and go and simply vanish, yet Alonso has endured.

At 45 years old, and with a young family, perhaps Alonso has decided that it is time to leave. He has had a great F1 story, indeed Alonso’s 23 seasons make up 30.26% of Formula 1’s entire 76-year history.

For God’s sake, Ben Sulayem, let him retire.