Watch: Fernando Alonso's prodigy recreates iconic celebration two decades on in his F3 Bahrain GP triumph
Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso's prodigy Nikola Tsolov recreated his mentor's iconic flying bird celebration after winning the F3 Sprint race at the 2025 Bahrain GP. The Spanish driver houses several talented drivers in his A14 Management Company, such as Pepe Marti and current Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto.
The two-time F1 world champion is in his twilight years of racing and has simultaneously shifted his focus to managing young talents and helping them in their motorsport journey. The management company selects a group of drivers to provide them with the best possible opportunities in the junior categories.
Tsolov, who is looking to become the Bulgarian driver to enter F1, won the F3 Sprint race ahead of Freddie Slater. With his record-equalling fourth win in the series, the Red Bull junior celebrated the win in Parc Ferme by recreating Fernando Alonso's iconic celebration from the 2006 Canadian GP.
It was a double delight for the 43-year-old, as not just Tsolov but Marti too clinched the F2 Sprint win later in the day to make it two wins for A14 Management. The Spanish driver was present at the podium celebrations to cheer on his young compatriot.
However, it was a disappointing day for Alonso himself as he could only manage a P13 in the qualifying session for the Bahrain GP.
Fernando Alonso chimes in on qualifying at the Bahrain GP
Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso believes he maximized qualifying for the Silverstone-based outfit despite finishing some way off the Top 10 (P13) for the Bahrain GP.
The Spanish driver used three sets of new soft tires to get out of Q1, and only had one set remaining for Q2. Speaking with F1.com, he said:
"We maximized our Qualifying tonight with P13 on the grid for tomorrow's race. For Q1 we used three sets of Softs and made it through. We were then quite limited with our options for Q2, and we didn’t have any new sets of Soft tires left."
"We haven't had the pace all weekend, so I think it could be a challenging race for us tomorrow. We will keep fighting and hopefully be close to the points," he added.
Aston Martin Chief Trackside Officer and former team principal Mike Krack was complimentary of Alonso's performance and said:
"Fernando put in a solid performance on a set of Used Softs and will start from P13. We need to learn and reflect on this session and come back stronger tomorrow."
Fernando Alonso has yet to score a point after three races and one Sprint in the 2025 season after back-to-back DNFs in Australia and China and finishing just outside the points in Japan. All of Aston Martin's 10 points have been scored by Lance Stroll thus far.