Renault driver Fernando Alonso remains pragmatic about the team’s chances this season, despite impressing during testing.
The double world champion feels the speed of the car in testing is not necessarily a sign of what’s to come when the season starts.
He said: “First we were really bad in Portimao and then we were the best in Jerez, but it is neither one or the other.
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“To be in the first six (in Australia) is almost an impossible task.”
Speaking during the ongoing group test at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya, the Spaniard named Ferrari, Brawn GP, BMW Sauber as the teams he thought would start the season with an advantage.
“Even then, it’s not all about winning the first race in Melbourne because the Championship is very long. There have been many changes and this season will not be a closed battle between Ferrari and McLaren.”
Nevertheless, Alonso, who claimed two victories late last year after a difficult start to the season, said Renault were in a better position than they were 12 months ago.
“I am more optimistic than this time last year,” he declared. “In 2008 I was not optimistic and after the first two or three races I thought that for the rest of the Championship I would be a tourist in those cities where we were competing.”
“The truth is that we are not too far off,” he added. “We are just a few tenths from the leaders and this situation is better than last year.”
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Asked how he saw his chances on a scale of one to ten of being champion again this season, the world champion with Renault in 2005 and 2006 replied: “Seven.”
He rated his chances of winning the March 26-29 season opener in Melbourne, Australia as a five on the same scale.
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