---
title: "Fernando Alonso Will Race With Toyota at Fuji After Schedule Shift"
description: "The schedule change will allow Alonso to partake in all rounds of the 2018 World Endurance Championship."
date: "2018-02-10"
modified: "2018-02-10"
authors:
  - name: "Jerry Perez"
    job_title: "Deputy Editor"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/jerry-perez"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/18387/fernando-alonso-will-race-with-toyota-at-fuji-after-schedule-shift"
categories:
  - "News"
tags:
  - "Fernando Alonso"
  - "FIA WEC"
  - "IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar series"
  - "McLaren-Honda"
  - "Toyota"
---

# Fernando Alonso Will Race With Toyota at Fuji After Schedule Shift

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/02/5a117b45cbca6.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

In an effort to allow two-time F1 champion [Fernando Alonso](<https://www.thedrive.com/start-finish/13222/mclaren-chief-says-well-do-everything-to-keep-alonso>) to race at Fuji Speedway in 2018, the World Endurance Championship's management has effectively changed the date of the 6 Hours of Fuji to October 14 instead of the 21st.

When Alonso originally agreed to race the entire 2018 WEC season with Toyota, the calendar did not present any scheduling conflicts for the Spaniard. This eventually changed due to a clash between the October Fuji race and the [IMSA](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/18027/these-pictures-of-the-2018-rolex-24-bring-the-atmosphere-of-daytona-to-you>) WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Petit Le Mans race at Road Atlanta, where several WEC drivers and teams also participate. The WEC quickly resolved the conflict so those folks to partake in both competitions. Something that now has been reversed, again, according to the [*BBC*](<https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/43009816>).

![message-editor%2F1518290897683-5a117b3dd8a46.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1518290897683-5a117b3dd8a46.jpg>)
*Fernando Alonso at the WEC Rookie test day in Sakhir, Bahrain., *WEC/Marcel Langer**

The calendar conflict posed two possible outcomes for Alonso as well as several other teams and drivers. If the WEC didn't approve the date change, Alonso would miss out on the Fuji race because of his commitment with [McLaren](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/14369/mclaren-announces-f1-engine-contract-with-renault-through-2020>) at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. However, if the date change was approved, many (possibly hundreds) of folks from WEC and IMSA would have to go back to the drawing board and revise their race entries, logistics budgets, and sponsorship commitments only because of one man—Fernando Alonso.

We [previously asked ourselves](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/18153/fuji-speedway-really-wants-fernando-alonso-to-attend-its-wec-race>) if Alonso's mega-stardom would prevail over common sense and the viability of other teams, and now we have an answer. While bringing Alonso, who is deeply adored by the Japanese, to race in Fuji under a Japanese racing team surely is an excellent PR move for the series, it also seems like a selfish one.

## Author
Jerry is responsible for upholding The Drive's ethos as an audience-first, enthusiast-driven car blog that serves up industry-leading news, reviews, culture, and motorsport coverage. Overseeing a staff of writers and editors from his home base in Indianapolis, he helps curate the site's daily rundown, as well as its medium- and long-term content strategies. Jerry joined The Drive in 2018 as a writer and worked as news editor and managing editor before becoming the deputy in 2023. As a lifelong car enthusiast and racing fan, Jerry believes that all cars are cool, but the people behind the machines are even cooler. This belief often gives The Drive a slightly different focus from most other car sites, where we explore the humanity behind the machines. When he's not obsessing over the day's biggest stories or hanging out at a race track, Jerry can be found behind the wheel of a car, most likely sharing a laugh with his teenage son or daughter.

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/drive_jerry/>)