Fernando Alonso has denied that his contract with Renault has an opt-out clause which would allow him to leave the team at the end of 2008, after just one season.

When the Spaniard split with McLaren at the end of 2007, a number of teams were interested in acquiring his services, however, they were all interested in a three-year deal. In the end, the two-time champion re-joined Renault in what many believe is a two-year deal.

When leaving McLaren there was already widespread speculation that the Spaniard would join Ferrari in 2009, and despite the deal with Renault these rumours re-surfaced in the wake of Felipe Massa's spin in Malaysia.

Speaking in Bahrain today however, Alonso reaffirmed that he has a two-year deal with the French outfit, though he acknowledges that contracts mean little these days.

"I don't remember that clause and I signed for two years with Renault," he told reporters. "But as we saw last year, the contracts are always very flexible."

Asked whether there was any form of opt-out clause, he simply said: "No."

Despite a disappointing start to the season, Alonso remains convinced that the French team can turn things around.

"We are disappointed about our performance in the first two races," he admitted, "but it is not the time to give up at the moment, we keep working as hard as we can and then we see at the middle of the season, or the end of the season.

And looking ahead...

"For next year there is a big change of rules it seems," he said. "Aerodynamically there will be a big change with very little wings and with slick tyres again probably. So all this can change the picture again in Formula One, so at the moment I am really convinced that we can do a good job, Renault and me together.

"When rules change dramatically it is like putting a coin in the air," he continued. "Any team can have a good car and fight for the championship. "If the rules stay the same for the next 10 years or whatever, we know that McLaren and Ferrari will fight for the next 10 championships. So hopefully next year everything will change a little bit and maybe we can take the benefit of it."

If nothing else, finally, we have a news story devoid of the words 'Nazi', 'scandal' and 'orgy'!