McLaren to struggle in wake of Alonso crash

Spaniard’s manager terms incident’s circumstances ‘very strange’

MELBOURNE: Fernando Alonso's mysterious crash has put McLaren on the back foot before the Formula One season has even started in what threatens to be another tough year for the team.

Speculation over the accident during testing is increasing rather than abating as Alonso prepares to sit out this week's season-opener in Australia on medical advice.

A report that Alonso, 33, thought it was 1995 and he was still in go-karting when he regained consciousness was dismissed as ‘nonsense’ by his manager Flavio Briatore.

But Briatore said the circumstances of last month's crash in Barcelona, which concussed Alonso and gave him at least temporary memory loss, were "very strange".

"I saw footage, which [Formula One chief] Bernie Ecclestone sent me, where we see that the impact is not so hard," Briatore told Sky Italia. "[Ferrari's] Sebastian Vettel is behind, he passes, and you see Fernando crashes without any apparent reason.

"We have to see if there is a steering problem. We have not had any information on that from McLaren."

Questions over the incident will be prominent in Melbourne this week as McLaren hope their misfiring cars can reach the chequered flag after limping through testing, with the MP4-30 clocking only 30 laps during the final session — the least of any team.

Ricciardo ready for home pressure

Red Bull number one Daniel Ricciardo insisted on Tuesday that he can cope with the pressure at his home Grand Prix, but played down his chances of winning the opening race of the season.

Ricciardo was still something of an unknown quantity at last year's Australian Grand Prix, but proved his mettle during a stellar 2014, finishing third in the drivers’ standings behind Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

"Once I'm in the car, the helmet's on... and the engine starts I could be anywhere in the world," he told reporters.

 

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