Alonso lands career-best Aston deal - report
"I was going to keep driving, I just had to know in which category"
Fernando Alonso’s decision to stay with Aston Martin for 2027 has reportedly come with the biggest contract of his career - potentially explaining both the lengthy negotiations and why the commitment is for only one season.
Mundo Deportivo says it has learned exclusively that Alonso’s new salary exceeds what he earned during his second McLaren-Honda spell, when estimates put him at around $38-40 million per year.
The newspaper says the exact figure has not been disclosed, but is believed to be above $40 million, which would make the 45-year-old one of the highest-paid drivers on the grid.
That would represent a major increase on widely reported estimates for his current Aston Martin salary, which have generally placed him around $20-24 million for 2026, while Lance Stroll is commonly estimated at around $12 million.
The Stroll figure is supported by the latest Aston Martin company filings, which showed $12.3 million paid in 2024 to Golden Eagle Racing, the company providing Lance’s racing services.
Alonso, though, has made clear that money was not the only reason for staying.
"If I didn’t think I could be world champion, I wouldn’t have renewed," he told El Larguero.
"I was going to keep driving, I just had to know in which category. I don’t feel that the time has come yet."
"I think that with a competitive car, it will be very difficult to beat me. If I had to watch the grands prix on TV next year, I think I would have felt like I’d like to be there."