Nico Rosberg was full of praise for Fernando Alonso after the 2022 Canadian Grand Prix, revealing he is a big fan of the Spaniard at the moment.
Alonso had a mixed weekend in Montreal, as he was in great form, qualifying second behind Max Verstappen in rainy conditions.
However the race day saw the two-time Formula 1 Champion drop down the order to seventh due to a wrong strategy from his team, as well as a problem in his Alpine’s power unit.
A further post race five-second time penalty, meant Alonso dropped further down the grid, and classified as a ninth place finisher.
Rosberg said of Alonso on Sky Sport F1‘s Any Driven Monday: “I am a big fan of Alonso at the moment. We all know that talent and skill-wise he is one of the best of all time.
“He sometimes lacked that social competence – he often had difficulties being in the best teams with the best cars. They didn’t really want him anymore because of burning bridges in the past.
“That was definitely one of his weaknesses in terms of getting even better results but in terms of talent he is surely one of the best of all time or right up there,” he added.
“For him to still drive like this is just so cool,” the German went on. “I was so gutted for him [in Canada], I wanted him to be on the podium. I think Alpine did a little mistake, they could have taken a jump into the pitlane.
Alonso driving awesomely and deserves his seat
“He is driving so awesomely there shouldn’t be any discussion that he is taking up anyone’s seat. He more than deserves to be where he is,” the 2016 F1 Champion insisted.
“It’s super spectacular the way he is driving, the fans all over the world are loving it and he is a great asset to the Alpine team,” Rosberg maintained.
Another World Champion also had great stuff to say about Alonso, and that is 1997 Champion Jacques Villeneuve, who reflected on the 40-year-old’s race in Canada.
“I would like to compliment Fernando Alonso,” Villeneuve said in his formule1.nl column. “He can still do it, it’s still the same Alonso but with more experience.
“Alpine was completely off in terms of strategy, and then there was also a problem on the straights,” he explained. “That is the story of his season, he is competitive but on Sunday things often go wrong.
“But the future is bright for Alpine, that team is getting better and better,” Villeneuve maintained.
Alonso currently sits tenth in the 2022 Drivers Championship with 18 points.