F1 News: Fernando Alonso Treats Himself To Rare Racing Aston Martin As Love For Brand Explodes
Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso has taken his love for racing to a new level as he recently bought an ex-Dani Juncadella Aston Martin Vantage AMR from the 2019 DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters) season, after driving it around the track in Spain last year.
The Formula 1 driver tested the rare car at the Jarama circuit in September 2023 during a sponsored event. Impressed by the car's performance, he decided to purchase one of the five chassis assembled by R-Motorsport in collaboration with engine manufacturer HWA AG.
The car that he bought for a price kept secret by him, is a test unit, while the other four units are being used in competitions. Martin Marx, the managing director at HWA, revealed that the two-time F1 World Champion initiated the purchase.
Unsurprisingly, the demand for the rare Aston Martin increased after the Spaniard purchased the car. HWA board member Gordian von Schoning told Motorsport.com:
“After the sale to Fernando, who drives this car and obviously enjoys it, interest in the two vehicles that are still available has increased significantly.
“For us too, it is the ideal scenario if the car is in good hands and continues to be driven.”
The car was handed over to the 42-year-old driver at the Jarama event, where he requested to add a passenger seat for a compromise in the fuel tank capacity. Daniel Juncadella, a Spanish DTM driver who was part of R-Motorsport’s 2019 DTM campaign, accompanied Alonso to ensure nothing was being missed. He revealed that the new owner of the car was aware of everything:
“I was there to give him some support in case he needed help with the car basics,
“He has a lot of experience and knows racing cars well. But it was interesting to spend the day with him. It seems that everything is very natural for him.
“He understands everything very quickly and doesn’t ask many questions because he knows what he’s doing. He said he was impressed by the car. The performance was better than expected for him.”
Juncadella understands why Alonso bought the test version of the DTM car. He added:
“Fernando is used to having a lot of power and good braking. But he said the car is pretty straightforward. He expected to have to turn the wheel more.
“It’s a little different today, with the GT3s, but the prototypes were high-performance vehicles. Fernando likes all forms of competition: he would drive anything if there was competition and a challenge.”
