Fernando Alonso's driving ability has never been in doubt – the Spaniard can do things behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car which others could only dream about.
But the Spaniard hasn't always made headlines for positive reasons. Throughout his F1 career, the Spaniard's genius on track has been tempered by some of the difficult relationships he has had with his team-mates.
Some have been more high-profile than others. His rivalry with Lewis Hamilton in 2007 remains legendary – the Brit, and F1 rookie making his mark with McLaren, ruffled defending champion Alonso's feathers to the point he ended up leaving after just a year.
Alonso was later accused of "splitting Ferrari down the middle" when driving alongside Felipe Massa, while, most recently, his relationship with Esteban Ocon turned sour in his final weeks as an Alpine driver last year.
But not all partnerships with Alonso turn into horror stories. Speaking during an interview with Mirror Sport, former McLaren driver Stoffel Vandoorne remembers his time racing alongside the Spaniard fondly. He said: "The only team-mates I had in Formula 1 were Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso – both world champions, and Fernando a double champion.
"It's always great as a young driver coming in to work alongside a very experienced driver. You have to be open minded and see how they approach and build their race weekends. Fernando is one of the greatest to do that. I have a great relationship with him."
Alonso and Vandoorne raced alongside each other 40 times for McLaren – only Massa and Ocon shared an F1 garage with the Spaniard on more occasions. And they will be reunited this year at Aston Martin, where Alonso will race alongside Lance Stroll and Vandoorne will be a reserve driver.
The Formula E champion said of his latest F1 role: "It was a natural change. In the last couple of years I had my reserve driver role with Mercedes. I was excited to join Aston Martin on a completely different journey.
"It's a team investing a lot of money into the future to try to become one of the leading teams. For me, to be a part of that right now helping to develop the car in that direction is great. Hopefully I can help them to become a winning team soon."
Stoffel Vandoorne was speaking as an ambassador of SAUDIA, the national airline and National flag carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. For more information on SAUDIA’s partnership with Formula E and how you can get access to exclusive content and prizes visit www.takeyourseat.saudia.com.
