Pope Ratzinger’s visit to Spain
Pope Leo XIV’s apostolic journey to Spain next June has allowed a curious episode from 15 years ago to be revealed. The protagonists were Fernando Alonso and the then-pontiff Benedict XVI.
It was revealed by Yago de la Cierva, who coordinated Pope Ratzinger’s trip to Spain in 2011. The Holy Father visited the Iberian nation from August 18 to 21 of that year on the occasion of World Youth Day held in Madrid.
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The crazy idea: Fernando Alonso driving the Popemobile
“We specifically asked in 2011 that Fernando Alonso could drive the Popemobile“, de la Cierva told ‘La Radio Canaria‘. The crazy idea was immediately rejected by the Vatican, which was more than clear: “They were indignant. They told us: ‘Absolutely not!’.
The decision was motivated by security reasons: “I defended the idea by explaining that Alonso knew how to drive and that the Pope would not be in danger with him. But they replied that a national police officer had to drive.”
In 2011 Fernando Alonso was a Ferrari driver and Benedict XVI used the Mercedes-Benz G-Class 230G as the Popemobile.
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The proposal has been dusted off for Leo XIV’s visit in June: “Yago de la Cierva confirmed that the idea of Alonso driving the Popemobile has been proposed again for the Pope’s upcoming visit to Spain”, Marca highlighted. Will there be an exception this time to the strict security protocols regarding the Holy Father?
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