Valentino Rossi an inspiration for Alonso

Fernando Alonso says the example set by Valentino Rossi is an inspiration to him as he seeks success late in his F1 career.

Rossi missed out on the MotoGP championship at the final race of the season last year at the age of 36, while he is currently third in the standings this year. For Alonso, race wins and championship challenges have been on hold since the new power unit regulations were introduced in 2014, but at 35 he believes he is driving better than ever.

“I don’t think that my time in Formula 1 is over,” Alonso told Motorsport.com. “I think I am driving at my best level now, and I have knowledge about the cars and the technical situation that allows me to push the car a little bit more to the limit.

"I’m very calm about the situation, I have a contract next year with this team again.”

And Alonso says Rossi's recent form - following uncompetitive years at Ducati - shows him he can be successful again if McLaren are able to provide him with a car capable of challenging for victories in the near future.

“After some years that you are not fighting for the championship but you keep going, going, going, you know, sooner or later you will show your talent – as Valentino is doing now.

“That’s a kind of inspiration for us. You need to trust in yourself, and when you have the bike or the car that performs at the best level you will be there. Because you cannot forget how to ride a bike, or how to drive a car, in two or three years.”

Breakfast with ... Alan Jones

Max Verstappen interview: Destined to be a champion?

Meet the British drivers chasing GP2 glory and an F1 seat

From Sauber to Ferrari - Exclusive interview with Kimi Raikkonen on F1's evolution

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.