F1 must not axe standing-starts - Alonso

Fernando Alonso has rejected claims F1 should consider abandoning its standing-starts in the wake of last Sunday’s Belgian grand prix.

The Spaniard was lucky to escape serious injury when the now-banned Romain Grosjean’s Lotus flew dangerously close to Alonso’s exposed cockpit opening.

The incident has triggered renewed calls for F1 to ramp up the cars’ head protection, while some have even suggested the sport might follow Indy’s lead by getting its races up and running with a rolling start.

"The start is part of the charm of the competition (in F1)," Alonso is quoted as saying by the Spanish news agency EFE.

"I find the chase to the first corner good, where you are calculating risk and making decisions very quickly. Together with the team, a lot of preparation is put into the starts.

"It’s too important a part of F1 to lose," insisted Alonso.

The former two-time world champion also baulked at recent moves to further slow the cars, because F1 single seaters "should be the fastest".

"I am surprised and upset about some of the proposed changes in the future, like electric cars etcetera," Alonso admitted.