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Alonso focused on title and nothing else

The 28-year-old Spaniard swept all other issues aside during a news briefing at the Sepang International Circuit that made clear he has no time for anything else.

‘My only goal is to win the championship, and to score points on Sunday afternoons. I am not going to worry about anything other than that at all,’ he said.

‘So I don’t care to worry about Saturdays, or pole position, or qualifying or other things. All that matters for me is Sunday and the championship.’

Alonso, winner of the title with Renault in 2005 and 2006, said he was single-minded because that was the way to succeed, and vowed to carry the same sense of focus into this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix.

‘When I am in the car that is all I am thinking of — to win the race or to score points and to win the championship,’ he added.

After winning in Bahrain and finishing fourth in Australia, he leads the drivers’ standings and said he never expected to be so well placed so early in the season.

‘I definitely didn’t think I’d be leading the championship after two races and this situation is way more than I had expected,’ he said.

He explained that this was why he was not disappointed at finishing fourth behind Briton Jenson Button of McLaren, Poland’s Robert Kubica of Renault and his Ferrari team-mate, Brazilian Felipe Massa, in Australia last weekend.

‘It was the best result for me and for the team,’ he said, dismissing suggestions that he was unhappy to be beaten by his successor at former team Renault and by his Ferrari team-mate.

‘I did not think to push and I was very happy to do my job which then was to protect my position and Felipe’s to score the best result for the team,’ he said. ‘We did that.’

Alonso also rejected suggestions that the revised 2010 rules that have banned refuelling had led to a loss of overtaking and spectacle.

‘No, I think the last race was very good for the fans, good for everyone, enjoyable and fun for the drivers, too,’ he said.

‘And anyway I don’t believe it is true about the overtaking.

‘Formula One is not about that. It is about the best technology and the best cars and the best drivers. If you just want to see overtaking, this is not the place to be.’

The Sepang circuit here is one Alonso likes and there will be no surprise to see him on the podium on Sunday.

‘The race is held on what is definitely one of my very favourite circuits: there are all sorts of corners and it’s a real joy to drive a Formula 1 car in Sepang, because you can really push it to the limit,’ he said.

‘I can’t wait to be racing in Malaysia for the first time at the wheel of a Ferrari. Our target? That’s easy, to carry on doing what we have done in the first two races.’