Oct.27 (GMM) The signs are growing by the day that Fernando Alonso will soon announce his intention to stay at Renault in 2009.
The Spaniard, who won back to back titles with the French team, has been the subject of intense speculation following his return from McLaren this year.Rumours have linked him with moves to Ferrari, BMW, Honda and others, but it now seems he has decided to commit at least for another season with Enstone based Renault."The chance (that he stays at Renault) is fairly big," team boss Flavio Briatore said in interview with the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag.The Italian hinted strongly that an announcement is imminent, reaffirming that Alonso's decision is due "by the end of the season"."The last race is this Sunday," Briatore reminded, "so both of the sides will decide then."Alonso's countryman, the Ferrari test driver Marc Gene, agrees that the 27-year-old Spaniard is likely to stay at Renault in 2009 rather than switch any time soon to Ferrari."There is no place at Ferrari for Alonso for at least two years," Gene said at the weekend at Jarama, where in a 2007 Ferrari he broke Gilles Villeneuve's long-standing track record of the Spanish circuit.Gene explained to Telecinco: "2011 is a long way in the future, and lots can happen in between."
