No fresh engine for Alonso in China

Fernando Alonso will not use a fourth fresh engine at this weekend’s fourth round of the 2010 world championship.

With the Spaniard already onto his third engine in Malaysia two weekends ago - when he retired from the race with engine failure - it had been reported that he would be halfway into his full season’s allocation ahead of the Chinese grand prix.

Each driver may use only eight engines for the entire 19-race season, with grid penalties applying once a ninth is fitted.

Alonso, 28, had his first V8 changed due to overheating after Bahrain qualifying, meaning that 2.4 litre unit can only now be used in free practice sessions.

The engine that completed the Bahrain race, however, can be used again for qualifying and grands prix, and Ferrari has confirmed that it is this 2.4 litre unit that will be fitted to Alonso’s F10 in China.

The same is also true for his teammate Felipe Massa.

"As a precaution, we opted not to use the Bahrain race engines in Australia, but they will be used in China, having concluded that they are fit for purpose, despite what happened (the overheating) at the Sakhir circuit," Ferrari’s engine and electronics chief Luca Marmorini said on Tuesday.

The Italian said Shanghai is not particularly hard on engines. "I would describe it as medium load," confirmed Marmorini. "It features a very long straight, but nothing that causes any particular concern for the power unit and also, the ambient temperature is not usually very high, which makes life easier on the engine front."