Hartley: 'He'll love it but Le Mans will be tiring for Alonso'

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Brendon Hartley says Fernando Alonso is on the verge of an exhausting period of racing as the Spaniard kick starts his WEC schedule this week at Spa.

The McLaren driver has signed up for a super season of endurance racing with Toyota that will keep his plate more than full for the coming months as he dovetails his WEC commitment with F1.

The 'plat de résistance' for the two-time world champion will undoubtedly be next month's trip to Le Mans, an event Hartley won in 2017, when the Toro Rosso and former Porsche works drivers also had a busy period to contend with.

"It will be something different for him," the Kiwi told Spain's El Mundo Deportivo.

"I did a similar thing to him at the end of last year. It's exciting but he'll be pretty tired when everything's over."

Hartley underlined the effort required for Le Mans, not only the draining strain associated with the race itself but also the workload that precedes the grueling 24-hour weekend.

"I don't know how many consecutive weeks he has, but I would say that Le Mans is a very exhausting race. It's not just a weekend, it's a full week, there's a lot of preparation, very short nights.

"But I think he'll love it," Hartley added.

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