Fernando Alonso says the steering locked during his pre-season testing accident which left him hospitalised and caused him to miss the Australian Grand Prix.

Having passed FIA tests which will allow him to return to racing in Malaysia this weekend, Alonso faced the press on Thursday afternoon at Sepang. When asked about his memories of the accident at Barcelona, Alonso said he could recall everything the next day the steering had locked and caused him to hit the wall on the inside of the track.

"I didn't wake up in 1995, I didn't wake up speaking Italian, I didn't wake up in all these things that were out there," Alonso said. "I remember the accident and I remember everything the following day. Obviously with the team we have been very close working on that and the FIA has been very helpful all the time. All three parties were in close contact constantly.

"There is nothing clear in the data that we can spot and say that was the reason, but definitely we had a steering problem in the middle of Turn 3. It locked to the right, I approached the wall, I braked at the last moment, I downshifted from fifth to third [gear] and unfortunately on the data we're missing some parts.

"Probably the acquisition data on that particular area of the car is not at the top so there are some new sensors here at this race and there are some changes that we do on the steering rack and other parts. That was the main thing. The last week at the factory was more working on the simulator and trying to explain all these new sensors and new parts that will go in to this race."

With McLaren saying after the crash the car could have been upset by a sudden gust of wind, Alonso criticised the team for speculating about the causes.

"No, definitely. I don't know if you've seen the video but even a hurricane will not move the car at that sort of speed. Also if you have any problem or any medical issue usually you'll lose power and go straight to the outside, not to the inside. Normally in a Formula One car you still need to apply some effort on the steering wheel.

"Honestly, with the accident and the repercussions, the news being in Spain and a lot of attention that day, probably the first answers or the first press conference that the team had was just some guesses. The wind and other possibilities created a little bit of confusion. But you can't say nothing for three or four days until I remember everything ... so I think they said the theory of the wind or whatever but it was not a help."

Despite Alonso saying "it's clear that there was a problem in the car but there's nothing on the data", the Spaniard insists he is not concerned to be getting back in the car without the problem having been understood.

"I have zero doubts or zero concerns."

Click here for F1i's Malaysian Grand Prix preview

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.

Recent Posts

Sebastian Montoya steps up to Formula 2 with Prema

Sebastian Montoya, the 19-year-old son of former Formula 1 star Juan Pablo Montoya, is set…

9 hours ago

Sauber finds its ‘Northern Star’ under Binotto’s leadership

When former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto took on the role of Chief Operating Officer…

10 hours ago

Leclerc hails a season ‘without missed opportunities' in 2024

Charles Leclerc concluded the 2024 F1 season with a sense of satisfaction, the Ferrari driver…

12 hours ago

Coulthard sounds alarm over FIA president’s rift with F1 drivers

Former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has voiced his dismay at FIA president Mohammed Ben…

14 hours ago

The rapid rise and fall of Super Aguri in F1

Super Aguri's application to join Formula 1 became a reality on this day in 2005,…

15 hours ago

Ferrari's 2024 Season: Marked improvement and a fight to the finish

Ferrari roared back into contention in 2024 to deliver their strongest season in years, thanks…

16 hours ago