Grapevine: Alonso in fresh Ferrari link

Alonso had been widely associated with Ferrari throughout last year amid doubts about his future at Renault, but his hopes of a switch were dashed when Kimi Raikkonen took up an option in his contract to extend his stay at the team until the end of 2010.

With Felipe Massa's future at Ferrari also assured, Alonso set about extending his own contract at Renault - with the team and driver having returned to winning ways at the end of the season.

However, respected journalist Pino Allievi has now written that Alonso has a four year deal in place from 2011, with get-out clauses agreed for both sides.

The report also suggests that there is a chance Alonso could be in place as soon as 2010 if Raikkonen does not improve after a disappointing campaign in 2008.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo did little recently to quell speculation about Alonso's future when asked during a meeting with the press.

When asked about the Spaniard, di Montezemolo said: "He's a fantastic driver, no question. I like him. Particularly in Japan he drove a great race. He's a champion and a team leader, but for the moment we don't have any problem with our current drivers.

"That is why we confirmed officially Massa and Kimi until the end of 2010. Life is long and in the future we will see. But for the moment we don't have any grey areas regarding drivers for the next two years."

A Ferrari spokesman declined to comment on the Gazzetta report, but told news agency Reuters: "We can only repeat that we have two drivers signed to the end of 2010."