Fernando Alonso won the second of his two world titles 10 long years ago this weekend.
In the decade that has passed since then, the man many in F1 still regard as the best driver on the grid has come agonisingly close another three times. And his quest for that elusive third crown has led to the two most trying seasons of his career with his current team McLaren-Honda, who he joined in 2015 after losing faith that Ferrari would ever get him there.
The struggles of 2015 and 2016, and the passing years, have shifted his perceptions about the importance of winning another championship – at least in terms of the simple statistics of it.
Now, in an exclusive and wide-ranging interview at the US Grand Prix, he tells BBC Sport that a third title would mean “probably less than people think”.
“It would be nice obviously to win three, to have the same as Ayrton [Senna],” Alonso says. “To win five would be even better, to win seven… It is always a non-stop wish.
“But it will mean a lot more than the number three. It would mean winning for McLaren-Honda – how the project grew up in such a short time. That would be the biggest thing for me now.”
Alonso admits that the past two years, fighting to even make it into the top 10 on the grid, have been: “Tough definitely – [I’m] missing the podiums a lot, missing the victories.
“But we work hard, we took that challenge and when we see progress like this year everyone is even more motivated.
“The day that arrives the first victory or the first win for McLaren-Honda will be a massive achievement for all of us. That chase is probably the motivation we are finding now because as you said missing the victories is very frustrating.”
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