Ferrari 'still in control' of 2012 F1 world championship

Alonso saw his 40-point lead in the title standings reduced to just 24 after Spa, which is far from comfortable considering Ferrari does not have the quickest car.

But team principal Stefano Domenicali is not worried by the situation, and instead thinks the attitude which helped the team lift itself from its pre-season troubles can help it end the campaign on top.

"We left Belgium with the awareness that the championship is still in our hands," he told the official Ferrari website.

"It is in the hands of all the people at Maranello, who have to improve our car, because it is not yet at the level it should be.

"The competition is still very open and Fernando is still leading the championship and that is the basis on which we can look ahead."

Ferrari is heading to its home grand prix at Monza this weekend, where it will be under the spotlight from thousands of its loyal fans.

However, Domenicali is eager to ensure that his team knows it must treat this race like any other by simply maximising its opportunities.

"There is a special feeling for our home race, but the reality is that the number of points on offer are the same as at the other 19 rounds, all around the world," he said.

"To sum it up, I would like to think we can leave Monza having scored very special points at what is a very special race for us.

"This will be a challenging weekend from the technical point of view.

"All the teams, including ourselves, will run cars in a one-off specification to meet the very low downforce requirements that are unique to this track and we know several of our rivals are very competitive at this type of circuit."