PROFILE: Alonso close to title with a little help from his team

Nov 11, 2010, 8:36 GMT

Abu Dhabi - Fernando Alonso has turned around a seemingly lost Formula One season with a little help of a Ferrari team order.

Team-mate Felipe Massa was controversially ordered to let Alonso pass for victory at the German Grand Prix - for which Ferrari were fined 100,000 dollars but the drivers themselves not punished.

Far behind in the title race at the time, the victory restored Alonso's morale as he staged an incredible comeback. Alonso leads the way into Sunday's finale in Abu Dhabi where he can cap his debut season at the famed Italian marque.

'we know what we have to do and taking the title depends on us,' he said confidently. Alonso won back-to-back titles 2005 and 2006 for Renault, fled back to the French team after just one year (2007) at McLaren before joining Ferrari on a contract until 2012.

The Spaniard said it was 'everybody's dream in this sport' to drive for the Scuderia and the start could not have been better when he led Massa for a one-two finish at the season-opener in Bahrain.

But engine problems, a Monaco practice crash and Shanghai jump start, as well as bad timing in connection with safety car phases in Valencia and Silverstone saw Alonso trail then leading Lewis Hamilton by 47 points after 10 of 19 races.

The following events in Germany changed everything as Alonso stormed to the top with four wins in the last eight races and three further podiums.

Alonso remaining silent on the team order affair and rather said 'the most important thing is to feel comfortable with the car again, that we are competitive again.'

Alonso has come a long way since first stepping into a kart at age three with wooden extensions under his soles to make the little boy reach the pedals.

Arguably the most complete driver of the current F1 generation, he has competed in 157 races since a 2001 debut at Minardi, and won 26 Grand Prix.

Alonso's success has generated F1 fever in Spain and the street of his birth house in Oviedo has been named after him.

An F1 title on Sunday would come the same year as Spain won the football World Cup for the first time, tennis star Rafael Nadal completed a Grand Slam and Alberto Contador won the Tour de France again.

Alonso is married to Raquel del Rosario, lead singer of popular Spanish band El Sueno de Morfeo, since 2006 and they live in Switzerland to be close to the Ferrari headquarters.

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