Fernando Alonso addresses F1 retirement rumours with major promise

Fernando Alonso has made a promise about his F1 future as rumours that he will retire at the end of the season continue to circulate.

Following the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring this weekend, Formula One will take a four-week summer break from on-track action.

As F1 fans eagerly await the sport's return with the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort on August 23, they will no doubt get their racing fix through rumours about the 2027 season.

Every summer, F1 teams start looking ahead to next year, with deals for driver changes and new signings often worked on and sometimes announced during the break.

And 2027 is expected to see some of the most dramatic changes, with 16 of the current grid of 22 drivers believed to be out of contract at the end of the year.

Without a doubt the biggest story in the sport right now is the future of four-time champion Max Verstappen, who has been strongly linked with a move from Red Bull to McLaren, but he's not the only big name considering his future.

At 44 years old, it's believed that motorsports veteran Alonso is considering calling time on his F1 career at the end of the 2026 season, particularly given Aston Martin's dismal performances this campaign.

Despite heading into 2026 with huge hype following the appointment of Adrian Newey, Aston Martin have been arguably the worst team on the grid this year, with Alonso scoring the team's only point from 10 races.

However, ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, Alonso has made it clear that, for better or for worse, the performance of Aston Martin this season will have no bearing on his future plans, which he is still considering.

"My decision is not about the performance of this year," he promised. "This year we started on the wrong foot.

“I cannot base my decision for next year on a performance that is not realistic.

“This is not the true potential of the team. It's much higher than what we see.”

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Fernando Alonso explains the one thing that will lead to retirement decision

Instead, the Spaniard has stated that the deciding factor on his future in F1 will be the regulations put in place for the 2027 season.

Alongside Verstappen, Alonso has been one of the most outspoken critics of the new regulations introduced this year, saying it had impacted his enjoyment of driving F1 cars.

“My decision for next year is more about the rules,” Alonso added.

“Driving these cars in places like Spa or Silverstone last race is not what I'm dreaming of for my future. So we'll see.”

Following the backlash to the new regulations, the FIA, F1's governing body, has already confirmed that there will be some changes to the rules next year.

They include a move away from the 50/50 split between the combustion engine and the battery, with the former also getting an increase in output.

It therefore remains to be seen if the changes will be enough to convince Alonso to stay in the sport, or if we may be entering the final races of his stellar F1 career.