Alonso rendered unconscious in test crash - McLaren boss Ron Dennis

Fernando Alonso was rendered unconscious during his accident in testing at Barcelona last week, McLaren boss Ron Dennis has confirmed.

The Spaniard has been ruled out of the third and final test of the winter, which is being staged at the Circuit de Catalunya where the two-time champion crashed out and hit a trackside wall on Sunday.

“He was unconscious for a relatively short period of time,” Dennis told reporters. “We could hear him breathing but no other sounds.”

With no clear footage of the accident available, it's unknown if Alonso's head suffered a blow during the impact or if he was made unconscious by the sudden deceleration of the MP4-30 when it struck the wall. Dennis suggested that his driver may have suffered a 'whiplash-like' trauma.

"We are putting his recovery first and his analysis second," said Dennis. The McLaren chief later added Alonso had "an inability to recall".

"The CTU and MRI scans were completely clear, no indication of any damage. There was no concussion detected in the scan and physically he is perfect,” said Dennis.

Alonso spent three nights in hospital before being released on Wednesday with Dennis attributing his length of stay to the two-time world champion’s superstar status in his native Spain – “the level of focus was extreme because Fernando is Fernando,” explained the McLaren boss – and the recent spate of high-profile head injuries in sport.

"Head injuries have taken centre stage in the world and people are being super careful. We were absolutely supportive that Fernando was perfect before he was released,” said Dennis during a 20-minute media briefing.

"He’s pushing very hard to get in the car,” said Dennis. “He is completely lucid and normal. He is completely fine and feeling better every day. There will be some tests. I can't see any reason he won't just sail through them but it's not for me to determine."

...SkySports