OMNISPORT

McLaren have revealed a special one-off livery to mark Fernando Alonso's final race in Formula One. The two-time world champion will bring the curtain down on 18 years in the sport at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday.

And the Spanish driver's car has had its color scheme tweaked for the occasion, with the red, yellow and blue from his iconic helmet design incorporated.

“We’re incredibly pleased and proud to be able to race a special one-off livery for Fernando in Abu Dhabi this weekend," said McLaren CEO Zak Brown. "We want his last grand prix to feel special in every way, and this was just one of the ways we could reflect that.

"We worked closely and collaboratively with Fernando, and then with the FIA and Formula 1 to make the change for this one race, and they were all hugely supportive of the move. Hopefully, this will give Fernando’s fans a little something extra to look forward to at what is bound to be an especially emotional weekend."

Alonso, meanwhile, is looking to bolster his 2019 calendar, with only the Indy 500 and the continuation of his World Endurance Championship campaign currently on the agenda.

"I will do many more [races], you will know step-by-step," he said. "[Indy] is the first one. Apart from the three races of WEC, I think there are [also] four tests on those.

"If you add the three weekends of racing, it's already seven, until June, plus the IndyCar tests and two weeks of the Indy 500.

"If you see the calendar until June, there are only two or three weekends off.

"Even if it seems there are not too many races, there is a lot of preparation."