FIA rejects McLaren request for Alonso to race

Although the FIA ruled Alonso out of competing at Sakhir as a result of injuries he had not fully recovered from after his Australian Grand Prix crash, Dennis was adamant that that was not the end of the road.

He, along with team manager Dave Redding, spoke at length with FIA representatives in race control on Saturday night to try to see if there was scope for Alonso to try to compete.

Motorsport.com has learned that the matter was subsequently discussed by the race stewards, but a decision was made that there was no justification in over-ruling the medical decision.

FIA president Jean Todt made it clear on Saturday that the doctors' judgement was final.

However, he has suggested that in future the procedure of checking drivers after big accidents could be revised to ensure that the FIA is better aware of potential medical issues.

“It is a complete decision [by] the doctors,” said Todt, when asked by Motorsport.com about if there were any grounds for the FIA to reconsider the decision.

“It is something that I discussed yesterday with the president of the medical commission, Gerard Saillant, and probably we should make one step forward in a deeper check after such an accident.

“Maybe something we need to think is make sure that the driver is followed very carefully for two, three or four days after such an incident.

“But from what I understand, it is a very wise decision [to not allow Alonso to race] and the doctors will never consider giving an authorisation unless all the evidence is very clear to them.”