Defiant Alonso doing his best to avert disaster at Ferrari: Burning rubber

In the nether world of Formula One, a failure to eradicate worries and look ahead to better times to come can be destructive and confidence-destroying.

And it is at rock-bottom moments when the exhortations of the likes of Fernando Alonso are paramount in soothing fevered brows. The 30-year-old Spaniard's value, both as a driver and as a resilient fugitive from failure, can be measured by the £100 million (Dh595.18 million) salary and five-year deal Ferrari have him locked into.

The car, up to now four grands prix in, has been little short of a disaster, saved only by Alonso's towering ability to get the best from it, in contrast to his Brazilian teammate Felipe Massa's abject performances.

Ferrari's woes led McLaren man Jenson Button to write off any threat to his title ambitions from Alonso as "not a worry".

But Alonso has other ideas as he hunts down a third world title with the odds apparently piling up against him.

At long last, so do the Prancing Horse outfit as the European campaign begins next weekend.

In testing at Mugello, Italy, this week, Alonso topped the times in the opening session, and the indications were that Ferrari could be getting their act together. The Spaniard is generally a stone-faced and inscrutable figure, not given to outpourings, good or bad, but he has awakened Ferrari and fostered the team's loyalty and affection to a level not reached for many years.

Five years without the third F1 crown his daring and infinite skill deserve may have frustrated him, but this barren spell has served to fill him with a morale-boosting mantra for the guys in the garage and the team's millions of fans worldwide.

No room for error

This week he said encouragingly: "Racing is like walking on a tightrope 30 metres above ground ­— you cannot afford to make any errors," he said.

"The mistakes we made in the last two seasons with strategy, pit stops and driver errors are not happening any more. That is because the team, by walking expertly and safely on the tightrope, has reached a level of professionalism and confidence higher than you could imagine.

"The most important aspect, that we should be the quickest car, is still lacking, but the struggles we have faced have made the team improve and become stronger.

"We have kind of saved the first four races — but we must now react and take charge. In any case we, and I, never give up. Even if things go bad next time out in Spain, it is not like our season is over and done with."

All he has to do now is convert his upbeat words into on-track deeds.

The author is an expert on motorsport based in England