Alonso 'nursing' car after problems

Although it appeared that Alonso was poised to launch an attack on eventual race winner Giancarlo Fisichella after his final pit-stop, Renault's director of engineer Pat Symonds has revealed a different story.

"We had some problems with Alonso's car," he told ITV. "We were concerned with the fuel pump currents and alternator output. We were nursing him to the end."

Symonds confirmed that the team ordered both drivers to back off their pace in the closing stages to guarantee Renault their first 1-2 finished since 1982.

"We turned both cars down. We didn't really have a race on our hands because we could hold Jenson okay. We had both engines on minimum but there were a few other issues going on."

Speaking about Fisichella's brilliant drive, just one week after he retired from the Bahrain Grand Prix, Symonds said: "What a bounce back. It was disappointing last race but he came back. I said in our race preview let's see what his character is like."