Fernando Alonso was spared the Italian media’s wrath after Ferrari opened its 2012 campaign with the troubled F2012 car.<\/p>\n
“Alonso once again saved Ferrari from disaster,” said the authoritative La Gazzetta dello Sport, after the Spanish driver drove the car to fifth place in Australia.<\/p>\n
The under-pressure Felipe Massa’s opening race, however, “was a nightmare”, the daily newspaper added.<\/p>\n
Jaime Alguersuari, the former Toro Rosso driver who is now a media analyst, also praised fellow Spaniard Alonso.<\/p>\n
“For Ferrari, it is an unique advantage to have a driver like Fernando Alonso,” he told El Mundo newspaper.<\/p>\n
“He did a sensational Sunday, with intelligence and ambition, which will push and raise the team, I’m sure.”<\/p>\n
Alonso remains confident.<\/p>\n
“There may be cars quicker than us now,” he is quoted by Britain’s Daily Mail, “but it’s like Manchester United or Chelsea who play badly for a game but still win 1-0.<\/p>\n
“Before this race we were working 24 hours (a day),” Alonso is quoted by Marca, “now it must be 25.”<\/p>\n
The Spanish press, however, is livid.<\/p>\n
“The fifth place is really a miracle,” said the sports daily Marca.\u00a0 “The car is ridiculous, rendering the team a midfielder.”<\/p>\n
Jenson Button, meanwhile, received universal praise from the international press corps, as did the fact that Red Bull’s dominance appears to have been knocked by McLaren.<\/p>\n
“That’s good news for everybody except (Sebastian) Vettel,” insisted Corriere dello Sport.<\/p>\n
The fight, however, has just begun.<\/p>\n
“Vettel turned the middling new Red Bull into a good race car,” said Gazzetta, referring to the German’s performance on Sunday, “which is a warning to the opposition.<\/p>\n
“He is still the world champion, and he will be hunting his first triumph of the year in Sepang.”<\/p>\n
Tuttosport, meanwhile, said Mercedes – which until Sunday’s race was the talk of the Melbourne paddock – was the “big disappointment” of the 2012 opener.<\/p>\n
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