Fernando Alonso turned down an opportunity to switch immediately to Ferrari out of loyalty to his current F1 employer Renault.

That is the claim of a Spanish newspaper, following reports from Italy that the former champion has now penned a deal to race with the famous Maranello-based team in 2011.

Diario AS said Ferrari were prepared to replace Kimi Raikkonen but Alonso put a stop to the deal because it would have left Renault in the lurch less than three months from the start of the 2009 season.


"In short, the Italian team's sudden interest came too late for Fernando," AS said.

E.A, Source: GMM
© CAPSIS International