Alonso May Be Back In Time For Oz GP

Fernando Alonso may have recovered well enough from last Sunday's crash in time to race in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on 15 March.

The Spanish driver was released on Wednesday from a hospital in Barcelona having spent three days under observation after crashing his McLaren in pre-season testing in the Circuit de Catalunya.

"I can categorically confirm that he has no lesion and that he wasn't electrocuted," McLaren chairman Ron Dennis said on Thursday, as reported in Spanish newspaper El Mundo.

"There's no sign that Alonso's brain is damaged. Alonso is physically well and I see no reason why Fernando can't be in Melbourne, but I'm not a doctor.

"Fernando wanted to return to testing (the car) but the doctors have told him that if he wanted to be certain, he needed to rest and have medical follow-ups."

The 33-year-old double world champion hit the wall at turn three of the Barcelona-based circuit and McLaren believe the wind was a major factor in the crash.

"Fernando was unconscious for several seconds after impact," Dennis revealed. "We could hear him breathing on the radio.

"In previous laps, Alonso had mentioned that turn was a complicated one because the wind affected the car.

"Nothing hit him directly and the reason for losing consciousness was due to the strong deceleration that his head had to bear after the collision. There is no evidence that he lost consciousness before impact."

Media reports questioned whether Alonso had felt ill prior to the accident, something which Dennis vehemently denied.

"According to our information, Fernando was steering, hitting the brakes and changing gears before impact," he said.

Dennis confirmed the sport's governing body, the FIA, has launched an investigation into Alonso's accident because of McLaren's request to do so.

Alonso will miss this week's final pre-season testing as the former Ferrari driver has returned to his home town of Oviedo to recover.

The Spaniard rejoined McLaren this season after a disappointing fifth and final campaign with Ferrari.

He won back-to-back world titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006 before spending one season at McLaren in 2007.

Alonso has 32 career grand prix victories, the last of which came in Barcelona in 2013.

Kevin Magnussen will share testing duties with Alonso's teammate Jenson Button.