Renault managing director Cyril Abiteboul says the team would not be a suitable destination for Fernando Alonso in 2018 as the Spaniard's high expectations could not immediately be met. 

Alonso has suffered from a miserable two and a half years with McLaren-Honda with 2017 representing the peak of his frustrations with the team's Japanese engine supplier as the two-time world champion sits 15th in the drivers' championship with just 10 points after 12 rounds. 

Speculation around Alonso's future has been rife in the past few weeks with rumours suggesting Alonso won't stay with McLaren if they continue with Honda into 2018 and now talk of an offer from Williams. 

One obvious alternative destination for the 36-year-old would be Renault where he won both of his two titles and who he began his Formula 1 career with, however, Alonso demands a car capable of challenging for championships, and Abiteboul says his team isn't in that position yet. 

"Things have to be compatible so that it can be a successful association, and not just because it has been a successful association in the past," Abiteboul told Autosport. "It's the future that we're worried about.

"He has his dynamic, I think he has urgency to be in a position to be fighting for championships again.

"We know that it's going to take us a bit of time to have a car that can offer that, so clearly the one thing that I would not want is to have a frustrated Fernando in a Renault car, that's for sure."

As for the potential Williams link, which was one of the main rumours in the paddock at Spa-Francorchamps, it is claimed the British team want the Spaniard to replace Felipe Massa in order to push the currently struggling team forward and help in the development of young driver Lance Stroll.

"We haven't announced who's driving for us next year. It's something we're still working on. I'm not going to rule [Fernando] in or rule him out," Technical Director Paddy Lowe commented. "There are lots of great drivers out there and we will always try to get the best ones we can.

"You need great drivers and great cars to win races. You have to build a car that attracts a great driver and vice versa. The better the car you have, the better the drivers you can attract," he continued.

"I've seen how important the driver is in a team. A good team needs a good driver as much as a good driver needs a good team - they lift each other.

"With a greater driver in the team, everybody is motivated to work that bit harder for performance because they know it's going to be exploited and deliver great results. But it can go the other way if you have drivers that are not performing."

Jenson Button has revealed he intends to return to full-time racing in 2018, as he competed in his first Super GT race with Honda at the Suzuka 1000km race this past weekend.

The 2009 Formula 1 world champion left the grid at the end of last year for what was considered a sabbatical as the Briton took up an ambassadorial role with McLaren and potentially a deal to re-join next year if Fernando Alonso left.

The 37-year-old would then replace the Spaniard for the Monaco Grand Prix back in May, as he competed in the Indianapolis 500, and current speculation seems to drift further towards Alonso not renewing with the British team for next year, however, in Monte Carlo Button appeared to make it clear that would be his last race in F1.

Indeed, when considering what he'll be doing next year, a potential McLaren return seemed a long way down the list of options.

"I will be definitely doing something next year for a full season," he told Motorsport.com. "Whether it's here or in America or somewhere else, I don't know yet but the discussions are underway.

"We'll see how this weekend (at Suzuka) goes. If it goes well and if I enjoy the weekend, which I think I will, then maybe I could be racing here next year."

After qualifying ninth, Button run as high as third before punctures and penalties intervened and dropped him and his team to an eventual finish of 12th.

"Through the corners, it feels like a Formula 1 car, which is pretty spectacular," he said talking about the performance of the Honda NSX-GT he drove.

"The cars are great to drive. They are fast, here's a lot of downforce and you can carry a lot of speed through the corners. Lots to learn. But I've always looked forward to a new challenge."

Felipe Massa says his eighth place finish in Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix was 'like a victory' following Williams' multitude of struggles in recent races.

The Brazilian returned to the cockpit at Spa after withdrawing from the previous race at Hungary due to illness but, in the opening practice session, destroyed the front-left of his FW40 in the tyre barriers on the exit of Les Combes ending his Friday running after just 15 minutes. 

He didn't fare much better on Saturday as both Massa and his teammate Lance Stroll were eliminated in the opening part of qualifying as well as being handed a five-place grid penalty for failing to sufficiently slow for yellow flags in the final practice session. 

Massa recovered brilliantly in the race as he stormed through to finish in eighth place amid the carnage which included Williams' main rival Force India having a disastrous day. 

“I’m very happy with the race, it was like a victory," said Massa. "Great start, great overtakes, good pace for the car we struggled with [in qualifying], so I'm really happy and also to be able to keep the cars behind at the end. 

"I know eighth place is not a nice position, looking at everything I have achieved in my career, but the way I drove the car and the way I drove in this race, it was definitely like a victory and I'm so happy. 

"For sure there's a lot to understand and improve in the car, like what wasn't working in the last two races, but I'm happy with the perfect race I had."

Also aware of the difficulties facing Williams currently is Chief Technical Director Paddy Lowe who has admitted the team will be making "substantial changes" to its philosophy in 2018. 

“There are lots of different things that we’ll be doing and we’re well into that at the moment," he continued talking to Motorsport.com. “There will be quite a few areas where we will be changing philosophy.”

The Grove outfit is currently fifth in the Constructors' Championship but fourth place Force India sit 58 points ahead currently with the larger threat coming from behind as just 11 points cover fifth down to eighth place in the standings. 

Frustrations within the team are evident with Massa even saying he thought the team was “going backwards' but Lowe believes he has the correct strategy to haul Williams back to the front of the grid.  

“We are fighting hard in that midfield group," the former Mercedes boss claimed. “We haven’t created any distance ahead of it but if anything we’ve slipped well into it in the last couple of months.

“We need to understand if that’s something where we’re going wrong or if we have been out-developed. We need to improve in all sorts of areas, that’s the nature of the competition.

“It’s about out-competing the other teams in all teams in all the important areas. We have a set of resources and it’s our job to do the best we can with those resources. It’s about efficiency. We can be a lot more efficient than we are being at the moment.

“As we achieve more success, that will attract more resources to improve ourselves still further. That’s the formula of Grand Prix development.”

Mercedes has gained a key engine advantage over Ferrari and the other suppliers for the remainder of the season after the FIA omitted them from new oil burning limits set to be imposed from the Italian Grand Prix.

The subject of mixing oil with fuel for extra performance was first brought up by Red Bull at the end of last year, with the team believing Mercedes and Ferrari were doing so to improve power in qualifying, the debate has continued throughout the year and now a guideline is set to be introduced in Monza.

However, because the Brackley-based team brought forward a planned engine update introducing the new specification at the Belgian Grand Prix rather than waiting for this weekend's race and is now part of their allocation for the season, the governing body has ruled they will not be permitted to abide by the new limit.

“To be clear if an engine (ICE element) is introduced at or after the Monza race weekend, its oil consumption needs to be below 0.9L/100km whenever it is used,” an FIA spokesman confirmed.

“If an engine (ICE element) has been introduced at or before the Spa race weekend, its oil consumption needs to be below 1.2L/100km whenever it is used.”

This means that in qualifying, where Mercedes already hold an engine advantage, the ability to run a richer fuel mix could see Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas able to start ahead of the Ferraris in the races, particularly on power circuits, and during the race too when defending or attacking the extra boost could prove decisive.

Aware of the likely anger this could cause at Maranello, Motorsport boss Toto Wolff told Autosport: “We are fierce competitors but the relationship we have is that we stick our heads together if there is a problem, and we discuss it behind closed doors.

“It hasn’t come up and we need to be careful that things are not made up in the public that are just not right, and not true.

"So far, I’m easy about it,” he added.

Also disadvantaged are Mercedes' customers who will get the same Spa-spec engine in a few races but will have to adhere to the new oil burn limit.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insists it is dangerous to assume Mercedes will have the advantage over Ferrari at the power-hungry Monza circuit during this weekend's Italian Grand Prix. 

The Silver Arrows have been marginally ahead of their title rivals in the engine department, so should have the edge at the so-called 'Cathedral of Speed', however, they were also tipped as the favourites last time out at Spa and, while Lewis Hamilton won the race, a charging Sebastian Vettel applied intense pressure.

Wolff is expecting a similar "dog fight" at the Scuderia's home race, pointing out that they will excel through the many low-speed corners.

"We said before Spa that it's dangerous to make assumptions this year and the race weekend demonstrated why that's the case," he said. "It was a dog fight with Ferrari and, although we came out on top, we did so by a small margin only. We can expect the same kind of close battle at every race this year.

"There will be no races where it is a walk in the park and we are ready for an epic battle all the way to the finish line in Abu Dhabi.

"Monza is a circuit that has been good to us in recent years," he continued. "It rewards low drag and peak power, both of which are among the strengths of our package; but braking stability and low-speed grip are also crucial through the chicanes.

"These are areas where Ferrari has held an advantage and the team that finds the best overall compromise will come out on top."

Many teams, particularly down the grid, will now be turning their attentions to their 2018 cars, but Wolff has stressed that Mercedes remain fully-focused on this year's title scrap, despite potentially risking falling behind next year.

"This is often the time of year when thoughts turn to the following season but our mission is clear: to win before and after a major regulation change," the Austrian stated. "Nobody said it would be easy and it is stretching our limits in every direction.

"We are still pushing hard with our development to squeeze every last bit of performance from the W08."

Sebastian Vettel is confident Ferrari remain "on the right road" to success after signing a new three-year contract over the Belgian GP weekend, which could see him remain at the Italian team until the end of 2020.

The German played down any expectation of news regarding his future in the build-up to the race at Spa but on Saturday morning word leaked that a deal had been done and it was later confirmed by the Scuderia.

It marks a continuation of the partnership that began in 2015 but speculation had been swirling about the terms of a new deal with the four-time world champion reportedly only wanting an additional year to be involved in the potential driver moves that could occur for 2019 as well as earlier claims of a pre-agreement to a future move to Mercedes. 

His likely tentativeness to commit long-term comes after the difficult year in 2016 when Ferrari struggled for development and slipped behind Red Bull, but with the drastic improvement this season, that has seen the Maranello outfit challenge Mercedes and Vettel at the top of the championship throughout, he admitted remaining was an easy decision.

"I love this team," he said on Saturday. "I believe Ferrari has something unique, something that other teams don't have.

"Two years ago we said we wanted to get back on top and I think we are on the right road. We aren't where we want to be yet, but we are striving for the top. I want to achieve a lot with Ferrari and I think it's the same on the other side. When people talk about the legend, then, to me, it appears this legend is still alive.

"It's extremely great to be part of that family and in a way, it was a no-brainer to continue."

Despite the rapid upturn in performance this season, there remains uncertainty over whether Ferrari can maintain the pace compared to Mercedes over the full season. But they seemed to be eased in the race at Spa as Vettel and the Scuderia arguably had the quicker race car, despite finishing behind Lewis Hamilton, at a circuit their main rivals were expected to dominate on.

“The car was very good," the 30-year-old acknowledged. "We didn’t change too much compared to Silverstone which shows, on the one hand, that Silverstone was just a bad weekend, but we improved the car also, especially in race pace, very strong. We were, on average, a second at Silverstone, so it’s a big step.

“I’m very, very happy. I think we are on the right track and I don’t think we have a circuit we should fear, going from now.”

Certainly, there will be a lot of Ferrari fans hoping Vettel can get one over their main rivals this weekend at Monza, the home of the Tifosi but where the Silver Arrow will likely be favourite once again.

Renault F1 Managing Director Cyril Abiteboul and Advisor Alain Prost have both apologised to Max Verstappen and Red Bull for what has now revealed to be an engine shut down that caused him to retire from the Belgian Grand Prix.

In front of an estimated 80,000 Dutch fans at Spa-Francorchamps, the 19-year-old suffered his sixth retirement of the 2017 season and third due to an engine problem causing team boss Christian Horner to consider whether the teams get value for money from their supplier among other criticisms.

To make matters even worse, such has been the number of problems this year, Verstappen is now expected to start at the back of the grid at this weekend's Italian Grand Prix due to penalties for taking more than his allocation of four of each engine component.

"I personally apologise to Red Bull Racing, and more specifically to Max and his many fans who are as disappointed as we are," Abiteboul said.

"We will work closely with RBR to define a course of action and a roadmap to eradicate issues such as this one which meant they couldn't harness their package's potential."

As mentioned it has since been revealed that an electrical problem caused the engine to shut down rather than fail, as it entered a safety mode that has been programmed to try and prevent significant damage.

"When the car came back, they removed the plug, put it back again and the engine worked,” Verstappen said.

"They want to play safe and not to blow the engine, but I prefer that [blowing the engine] than its shuts down the engine and it runs again at the next restart,” he added.

The constant issues have led to speculation over the future of the youngest F1 winner in history who has admitted frustration is wearing thin with Red Bull and questioned their future competitiveness with Renault.

Asked about the level of faith his son has in the team, former F1 driver and father Jos Verstappen told Dutch TV: "You do start to question everything, I notice about Max that he's very disappointed.

"It's tough to keep yourself motivated the whole time when things are going like this. I mean, he's doing very well in qualifying, he's half a second quicker than his team mate and he's just behind the Ferraris and then, after seven or eight laps, he's standing at the side of the track again. This should not be able to happen, certainly not at a top team."

Verstappen Jr. added: "I've spoken with (Red Bull advisor) Helmut [Marko] again and told him that I'm not happy. The fun fades away. You go on holiday, charge yourself after a kind of terrible [first part of the] season and then you arrive at Spa and it goes wrong."

Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner has slammed engine supplier Renault over poor reliability following Max Verstappen's third retirement of the season due to a failure at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Speaking after the race, the Dutchman claimed luck was no longer a factor in the problems and is now expected to take a grid penalty at this weekend's Italian Grand Prix at Monza following what was his sixth overall failure to finish in 2017 at Spa.

It is just the latest in a number of criticisms this season and, commenting on the situation, Horner echoed comments Verstappen made earlier in the year by suggesting the French manufacturer isn't in a position to fight for wins and championships.

"Renault are quite aware that its reliability and product isn't where it should be," he said. "It's their business to sort that out. We're a paying customer and it's obviously below par the service we are seeing at this point in time because [of the] reliability issues, the failures.

"We pay a hell of a lot of money for the engine they need to sort it out. It's hurting them as much as it is hurting ourselves and at this level, you can't afford the kind of failures that we're consistently seeing."

The Briton didn't just limit his disappointment at Renault to Red Bull either, pointing out the problems at junior team Toro Rosso this season and at Spa.

"Reliability across the three teams is pretty dire," he claimed. "Turbo failures with Kvyat, engine replacements that have had to happen with two cars as we come here. It's not great, it's far from great and it's not the level an engine supplier which wishes to be competitive in F1 should be at.

"They are working hard at it and hopefully putting in place process to avoid the kind of issues that we are seeing."

The ongoing problems once again will cause speculation over Verstappen's future with Red Bull, with the 19-year-old admitting patience is running thin.

“It’s enormously frustrating but you got to take a bigger view you can’t get caught up,” Horner responded. “Here and now it really hurts, and it really hurt Max because it’s his home race, massive crowds, huge support, he’s in a great position, and his engine has failed on him. That’s hugely frustrating for him and of course the support group that he has around him.

“That needs to change but unfortunately as a team that’s something we don’t control. It’s beyond our control. So all we can do is put pressure on our supplier, like any supplier, to say ‘come on, get your act together!”

Valtteri Bottas believes has vowed to continue pushing for the Formula 1 title but also acknowledged he would accept Mercedes introducing team orders if that directive came.

The Finn had a difficult Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday, dropping two places after a Safety Car period to finish fifth and, as a result, fall 41 points behind championship leader Sebastian Vettel and 34 behind teammate Lewis Hamilton.

The recently turned 28-year-old, who claimed his first half of the year had been "average" joining Mercedes at the beginning of the year, insists he can still have a say in the championship conversation.

"I don't know, I think it depends a lot on me, also,” he said. “If I manage to perform well if I manage to get pole position and escape in the races, then it's in my hands as well, if I perform well. There are still eight races to go, there's a good amount of points for grabs.”

Bottas did concede, however, that he was starting to become reliant on some help from those ahead to maintain his chances and, therefore, would be prepared to back Hamilton's title bid towards the end of the year.

"The guys that are ahead of me in the championship, they may get some DNFs hopefully -- hopefully not for us, but it can happen, but I don't think that way,” he claimed. “I don't let those negative things come to my mind.

“For sure at some point, I'll understand if the team wants to really go for the championship to make sure, at least, that one of their guys wins it, but it's a bit early and we're still going race by race. Different races bring different situations, so we'll see."

Reflecting on the events at Spa, where he passed by both Daniel Ricciardo and Kimi Raikkonen at a Safety Car restart, he believes luck with the tyre situation played a major role and ultimately led to what happened.

"It's always difficult to predict this kind of things, like the Safety Car and then we only had one new set of Softs,” he said.

“For sure, if there was an extra set of fresh Ultrasofts it would have been better but in these conditions, I think we've made the right choices, our car was really good on the soft tyre but it's easy to say afterwards that in normal circumstances we could have done differently.

"We were just a little bit unlucky, at the end of the day, with the Safety Car. For sure, looking back, it would have been better to have fresh Ultrasofts available for the restart but it's a bit too late now because the tyre choices are made two months before the start of the Grand Prix...''

Kimi Raikkonen appeared somewhat bemused by what he described as a "pointless" penalty for failing to slow for double waved yellow flags during the Belgian Grand Prix.

The incident came as marshals were in the process of clearing Max Verstappen's Red Bull from the side of the track along the Kemmel Straight, as the Dutchman suffered his sixth retirement of the season.

The Finn was seen not to lift off the throttle as he sped through the zone where drivers are expected to slow down and be prepared to stop in some circumstances, but he defended his case claiming the recovery had been all but completed as he approached. 

"I knew there was a yellow flag but the car was at least halfway behind the barrier on the straight," he said. "I didn't go faster but I didn't lift on the straight. In my view, it was pointless to get penalised for that.

"I completely understand if he was by the side of the circuit, on the proper side and there is people working on it but this is what happened and I would be surprised if everybody else lifted."

The Ferrari driver, who was re-signed for 2018 last week, was subsequently given a 10-second stop and go penalty, which would drop Raikkonen from fourth to seventh, however, he would be able to recover passing several cars and using the Safety Car to regain P4, passing the Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas at Les Combes.

"On the restart, I got a really good tow from two cars and then Ricciardo was on one side, Bottas was in the middle and I just had just enough speed to get next to Bottas, I managed to go on the inside," the 2007 world champion said talking through the overtake.

"I got one car. After that, I never really had the speed advantage over the Red Bull. They were surprisingly strong in race conditions compared to what they have been the whole weekend.

"They had good speed in the right places always and good lap times but at least I got one place back."