Ever wondered why Fernando Alonso attracts so much attention from the media and public alike? It’s because he’s a huge motorsport star, so much so that WEC organizers have moved the date of the Japanese race to allow Alonso to participate.
The Spaniard, alongside the McLaren Formula One team, recently announced that the two-time F1 champion will compete in the 2018 WEC season with Toyota. However, he was initially ruled out of the Japanese event because it clashed with the US Grand Prix in Texas.
Keen to ensure Alonso can compete in all WEC races this year, organizers at Fuji Speedway have brought forward the event from October 21 to October 14. Fuji being officially owned by Toyota surely helped…
BBC Sport suggests this is the first time an FIA world championship event has been moved purely to ensure one driver can compete. This is how much Alonso means to the World Endurance Championship.
Responding to the news, Toyota said: “Fantastic for our Japanese fans that Alonso can also race in Fuji due to WEC date changes.”
Despite having 21 Formula One grands prix and six WEC races to participate in this year, McLaren executive director Zak Brown isn’t concerned about the driver’s workload.
“Fernando is very well prepared, knows what it takes to be successful and he wouldn’t have taken on the additional commitment if he didn’t think he could do both at the highest level.”
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