Alonso confirms he will stay at McLaren until 2017

Fernando Alonso on Thursday made light of his frustrations with the struggling McLaren Honda team and confirmed he plans to stay with the team next year and through 2017. He said his widely broadcast radio messages, in which he criticized the performance of his car’s Honda engine during the Japanese Grand Prix, were insignificant and had not upset Honda.

After two weeks of intense speculation about his future, the two-time, world champion Spaniard said his plans were clear and he was not thinking of retiring before the end of his contract which runs until 2017.

Asked if he would still be racing for McLaren next year, he said: "Yes, of course… And 2017, yes." Teammate Briton Jenson Button, the 2009 world champion, has agreed to stay with the team next year.

Alonso said also that his radio comments in Japan had not caused any problems within the team.

In that race, he said the performance of his Honda engine was “embarrassing" and he also compared it to the units used by cars racing in junior category GP2.