Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso has claimed that he can still close the gap on Sebastian Vettel at the top of the drivers' world championship.
The Spaniard, who is currently 30 points behind Vettel, dropped to fourth in the standings after finishing eighth in the Bahrain Grand Prix.
At the same stage last year, Alonso was 10 points adrift of the Red Bull driver. However, Alonso believes that he is still in good shape to win a third title this time around.
"Last year we were 1.5 seconds behind the top cars," Sky Sports News quotes Alonso as saying. "This year we have finished two races without problems and we were second in Australia and won in China.
"It's a very different feeling - and very different package which brings us optimism and confidence.
"It's true we are some points behind, but the championship is long and we have seen last year that Sebastian was 43 points behind us after the summer break and arrived with the lead in Austin. In five or six races you can recover 50 points with some consistent results. Until we are 75 or 80 points behind, we should be optimistic."
Alonso last won the drivers' championship in 2006.
Steven Toplis
