'Alonso has always given 100 per cent'

De la Rosa and Alonso have known each other for over 20 years. For years they were competitors on the track, but they also worked together a lot: Indeed, De la Rosa was a test driver at both McLaren and Ferrari during the periods when Alonso was the regular driver there. During that time, they became good friends. Since this season, De la Rosa has been an Aston Martin representative, which means he is working with Alonso again for the first time in a decade.

"What really impresses me about Fernando is the fact that he’s 41 and he’s exactly the same Fernando with the same hunger as I met in 2007," said De la Rosa. "There’s no difference whatsoever in his approach, how hard he’s working and how hard he’s trying and pushing everyone. Physically he’s young, he’s been taking care of himself and he’s pushing incredibly hard in every little detail -- not only on the car, on the team, but also physically on his training regime, on his diet. He’s a very complete athlete."

'He always gave 100 per cent'

Aston Martin seems to be particularly competitive this season. Alonso already managed a podium finish in the opening race of the season, and this is not expected to be a one-off this season. It is a huge improvement for Alonso compared to what he was able to achieve in recent seasons at Alpine and McLaren.

"It’s the fact that he hasn’t thrown in the towel at all," analyses De la Rosa. "He didn’t need to see the carrot of the podium to be 100%. He was always giving 100% even if he was fighting as a double world champion for 15th position."