Alonso-McLaren relationship not broken

Bob Fernley

(GMM) Zak Brown insists McLaren's relationship with Fernando Alonso is not broken.

After almost winning the Indy 500 with the Andretti entry in 2017, Spaniard Alonso attempted to complete his 'triple crown' goal with McLaren this year but failed to qualify.

McLaren promptly fired the Indy team's boss, Bob Fernley.

"To answer your question, we got it wrong," Brown said in Monaco on Thursday.

But the timing for the Indy 500 failure is crucial, as Alonso recently cleared his diary for 2020 and might now make plans without McLaren.

Team boss Brown, however, insists the relationship with Alonso "has never been better".

Alonso does not look happy

"He was obviously very disappointed. We let him down, he deserved to be in the race," he added.

"What he does post-Le Mans is up to Fernando. We have a contract with him for some McLaren activities."

Instead of preparing for Sunday's Indy 500 or being in Monaco, Alonso this week posted on Instagram a photo of himself mountain biking.

Brown said: "I think when you come off an emotional weekend like that you want to take some time to reflect.

"Let's see what he wants to do in the future, and if that aligns with some of McLaren's activities then that would be great.

"But I think he's a bit undecided on what he wants to do so we will pick up those conversations when I see him in Le Mans."