Briatore: Alonso "does not remember crash"

Flavio Briatore says Fernando Alonso does not remember the crash that has left him in a Barcelona hospital.

Fernando Alonso, McLaren is airlifted from the circuit in a helicopter

The crashed car of Fernando Alonso, McLaren

McLaren has denied wild conspiracy theories about the cause of the accident, blaming an abnormally strong gust of wind for the reason Alonso plunged off the track at Turn 3.

The Spanish driver has spent two nights in hospital recovering from concussion and the effects of his post-crash sedation.

His manager, Luis Garcia Abad, eased the F1 world's fears on Monday when he published to social media a photo of the 33-year-old smiling and giving a thumbs-up whilst sitting in his hospital bed.

And Flavio Briatore, a guiding hand throughout Alonso's F1 career, also played down the wilder speculation about the cause of the crash.

He does not remember the incident, but that is normal. I think tomorrow he will be out of the hospital.

Flavio Briatore

"It was just an accident," he told Italian radio Rai.

"From the telemetry we see that he was trying to keep the car on the track," the former Renault boss added.

"It is the second serious accident of his career, the first being in 2004 (actually 2003) when he took a really hard impact in Sao Paulo.

"The important thing is that the (medical) tests are all negative," Briatore revealed. "He does not remember the incident, but that is normal. I think tomorrow he will be out of the hospital."

Just an accident

The 64-year-old denied wild rumours about the crash, including that Alonso was electrocuted by struggling Honda's new energy recovery system.

"I do not understand those stories," Briatore said. "It was a normal accident.

"Unfortunately, these things happen – even with a driver like Fernando – as the G-forces are tremendous. At other times you can have a much more spectacular crash and nothing happens to you," he added.