Could Alonso’s life as a single man be headed for the finish line?

A Spanish gossip magazine is running an “exclusive” story about the alleged upcoming wedding between Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso and TV journalist Lara Álvarez.

EL PAÍS contacted the racing champion’s representative, who said he has no knowledge of the information included in the Diez Minutos story, and which was accompanied by a wealth of photographs of the couple in Patones de Arriba (Madrid).

According to the magazine, the wedding will take place before the end of the year, either in Dubai or the Maldives. No source is quoted in the story.

“When two people love each other and are happy together, distance does not matter”

While the news has been picked up by a range of media outlets, neither Alonso nor Álvarez have made a public statement about the news.

Fernando Alonso and Lara Álvarez have been dating for over a year, and have not sought to keep their relationship secret. They have sent each other messages via social media, regularly have their picture taken at circuits, and spend long periods of time together in Dubai, where the Asturias-born world champion is currently living.

Lara Álvarez, 29, known to television audiences for her sports coverage and as a host of reality shows, has spoken out about the relationship in the past, explaining how important Alonso is to her.

But the 34-year-old driver, who is known for fiercely guarding his privacy, has never said a word about his new partner.

When Alonso first married in 2006, he concealed the fact for several months – and only admitted it when the priest who conducted the ceremony let it slip. That is why it is highly unlikely that Alonso will say anything about any upcoming wedding plans.

His fiancée left for Honduras on April 1 of last year to host the reality show Supervivientes (Survivors). It was before that three-month trip that she talked in public about Alonso and how the couple would deal with the separation.

“When two people love each other and are happy together, distance does not matter,” she said at the time. “We have to be apart now, but I’ve been offered a prime time show with millions of viewers, with a team that I’ve been told is wonderful, and I am taking over from an incredible professional, Raquel Sánchez-Silva… How could I turn it down?”

When Alonso sustained a serious accident at the Montmeló circuit in Barcelona last March, Álvarez was there by his side.

“I am aware of the dangers of driving a Formula 1 car, but you can’t imagine the fear,” she said of the crash. “I know that he is an elite athlete, and of course there are risks involved, but you never think that something like this could happen.”

English version by Susana Urra.