Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton and Eddie Jordan (all images via IMAGO)

Fernando Alonso is the oldest driver on the grid, but his performance is unmatched by multiple rookies. The endurance of the Spaniard is often commended, and he has been a driver at a fair share of teams. Moreover, he was Lewis Hamilton‘s first-ever teammate at McLaren, but the driver pair had a lot of fallouts as both scrambled to establish their authority. This raging battle between the two led Eddie Jordan to reveal Alonso’s mindset when competing with the Briton.

McLaren had the best pair on the grid for the 2007 season. The reigning champion, Fernando Alonso, had left Enstone to begin his new career at Woking. On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton was promoted straight from GP2, giving the team a diverse range of experiences. However, this diversity eventually came to bite them back, as Alonso and Hamilton were involved in multiple feuds.

Consequently, these battles hampered their title challenges causing them to lose the title in the final race. This frustration led to a rivalry between the two former world champions. Subsequently, former team owner Eddie Jordan has witnessed multiple driver rivalries and is well-versed in the ongoing cold war between drivers

In his[Fernando Alonso's] mind, he's as good as Lewis[Hamilton]. He was hoping to be able to fight with Lewis this year and, to be honest, it hasn't happened and I don't see it happening for the rest of the year.

Eddie Jordan said in the Formula For Success podcast

The 76-year-old asserted that the former double champion thinks of himself as better than Hamilton. However, he reckoned that the Brit and the Aston Martin driver have been in two different leagues, with Hamilton having the upper hand between the duo.
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Fernando Alonso is not left dejected by Aston Martin’s poor performance

The 43-year-old began the season with multiple top-six finishes in the initial few rounds. The Silverstone-based outfit was ahead of Mercedes but soon fell back and found it troubling to even stay within the fringes of points by the mid-way mark.
Fernando Alonso (via IMAGO)
However, he denied the claims of being frustrated by the stagnant development.

No, I will not call it frustration. I think it's the nature of the sport. At the end of the day, we are not happy with our position, that's for sure. But in December, only one guy will be happy. Probably the second guy will be more frustrated than me in Abu Dhabi, the third guy and the fourth and things like that. So that's the nature of the sport.

Fernando Alonso said in an interview with RacingNews365

The former world champion explained that except for the winner, every other driver is dissatisfied with their status on the grid. He further reiterated that while they are not happy with where Aston Martin stands at the moment, it’s the dilemma that teams often face in the championship.

Apart from this, Alonso has been fairly optimistic about the team’s progress. Thus, he would be hoping for the last 10 races to be a lot better than the last few.