Vettel, Hamilton and Räikkönen to deprive Alonso of the title?

With 164 points on the scoreboard, Fernando Alonso is the surprising leader of the 2012 championship despite a start to the season he would have undoubtedly preferred to be less tumultuous for himself and his team. With a forty-point lead over his closest rival, Mark Webber, the Spaniard is assured of approaching the Italian Grand Prix as the leader, no matter what happens in Belgium.

The only man to have won three times this season and to have scored points in each of his outings, the Ferrari driver is considered by some as a favorite for the title. But once bitten, twice shy, Fernando Alonso knows that nothing is won yet and is very wary of Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel: “They are the drivers we have focused on so far,” the Asturian tells *Totalrace*, aware that his current lead will not be enough. “They are our main rivals, but all the teams are quite close. Let’s hope they fight each other and that no one dominates. I think the gap between the top five or six teams is not impossible to close: just one or two good races and you’re back at the top.”

Giancarlo Minardi, founder of the eponymous team, also believes that the title is far from guaranteed for the Ferrari driver: Spa will be a true turning point for one of the most beautiful championships in recent years. Until now, we haven’t really had a leader in terms of driver or car, and even though Fernando Alonso has a 40-point lead, I think it’s premature to say the title is his.

For the Italian, Fernando Alonso will have to especially watch out for Kimi Räikkönen who, in the last five races, has been the driver to score the most points behind the Spaniard: « There are five drivers who can still win the title and the biggest threat could come from Räikkönen. Unfortunately, some results have not gone his way and he also needs to improve in qualifying, but he is aggressive and consistent in terms of performance. »

From the performance on the evening of the Hungarian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso acknowledged that more would be needed in his F2012 to consider the title more serenely. With five weeks of summer break, including two of mandatory factory shutdowns, the teams should be able to continue developing their cars and arrive at Spa with some new features: « It will be important to make the most of the summer break and develop new elements, » estimates Minardi. « Ferrari needs to find more performance and even if Red Bull Racing has lost some of its luster, they can rely on the consistency of their two drivers, unlike McLaren, Ferrari, or Lotus. »

Minardi, however, believes that Ferrari and Alonso have strong assets to defend their title chances to the end: « Alonso is in great form and has managed to take advantage of every opportunity, well aided by the reliability of the Ferrari. From this perspective, it allows the Scuderia to focus entirely on the development of their car. »