Motor Sport: Flavio Briatore is backing former protege Fernando Alonso to beat Lewis Hamilton in this year's enthralling battle for the Formula One world title.
Alonso has had to play second fiddle to McLaren team-mate Hamilton in the last two grands prix in Canada and the United States.
The 22-year-old British rookie has comfortably won both races, building up a 10-point lead in the championship standings. Yet Briatore, who helped Alonso win the title in 2005 and 2006 with his Renault team, has rejected claims the Spaniard has taken his eye off the ball this year and insists he will reclaim his crown.
"I do not believe Fernando has changed and I believe that he will win the championship," remarked Briatore."Like many drivers he has had some difficulty adapting to a new team, while he has gone from Michelin to Bridgestone, whereas Hamilton already knows the tyres from GP2.
"Fernando has to be calm, to focus on himself, forget everyone
else, and he
will win it."
Briatore feels Alonso has to dig deep, recalling last season's showdown with Michael Schumacher when the German reeled in his rival and looked poised for an eighth title. Alonso, though, fought back to become back-to-back world champion at the final grand prix in Brazil.
"Everybody thought it was lost, but we proved that it was not," Briatore told Spanish newspaper Diario As. "So for him to do it again he has to do what he did again — to think about his work in the car and not get distracted by outside pressures.
"He does not have to read the English press, nor the press of his own country."