Fernando Alonso has said he is more concerned about getting home to watch Spain in the World Cup final than racing at Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix.
Alonso has had to endure another difficult season with Aston Martin, who have been woefully off the pace with engine partner Honda.
Aston Martin have been fighting with backmarkers Cadillac at every race so far and Alonso admitted he will go into the Belgium event distracted.
“It will be different, as we don’t expect much this weekend,” two-time champion Alonso said the at Spa-Francorchamps circuit. “The main focus on Sunday will be to get home and watch the match, to be honest.”
Sunday’s race starts six hours before the World Cup final between Alonso’s Spain and Argentina kicks off.
“It’s going to be tricky because we are flying back home,” Alonso added. “So maybe again on Sunday the second half will be probably the moment that I will watch the game. And the first half, just miss it.”
Alpine’s Argentine driver Franco Colapinto arrived in the Spa-Francochamps paddock on Thursday in his nation’s jersey.
“I’m definitely going to be much more nervous about the match than the race,” Colapinto said about the final.
Colapinto was speaking the day after Argentina’s dramatic late semifinal comeback win over England.
“Yesterday we had a lot of fun, a lot of suffering. But if you don’t suffer a bit, you’re not Argentinian. It was one of those matches that, you are really nervous, but then you celebrate a lot. So it was a long night, but very fun.”
Englishman Lewis Hamilton spoke about that loss too and praised his team’s run to the semi-finals.
“I watched in pain,” the seven-time world champion said. “I’m so proud of the boys for getting as far as they did. Can imagine how much work they put in and how much time and effort and of course they had all the support [back home].
“Tough [to lose] against Argentina, oh my god. Just gutted for them. I was sitting there with my fingers crossed -- everything crossed, hoping we would pull it off.”
