Alonso not feeling pressure - Kovalainen

Heikki Kovalainen has hit out at suggestions that F1's reigning world champion is "feeling the pressure" of racing alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2007. The media made a meal of Fernando Alonso's claim this week that he has always felt "uncomfortable" at the McLaren team in 2007, after he lost the lead of the drivers' championship to his rookie teammate in Canada. British newspapers interpreted the outburst as the Spaniard losing his cool; the Daily Mail declaring that he "has been rattled" by Hamilton's impressive showing.

"The Spaniard, normally resilient, appears to have one weakness -- he cannot cope with being embarrassed by a teammate."

The Times pointed to "a succession of errors" for 25-year-old Alonso, adding that his scrappy performance in Montreal "underlines that (he) is not only feeling the pressure from Hamilton's raw speed but is also being worn down by the Briton's poise and presence of mind in the heat of battle."

F1 rookie Kovalainen, however - who replaced Alonso at the championship winning Renault team in 2007 - told the BBC that it's "not right" for his predecessor to be accused of failing to cope with pressure.

The Finn, who worked alongside Alonso as a test driver last year, said: "I don't think Hamilton has any impact on him.

"He has shown time and again in the past that he is mentally very tough and in a long career he has not made many mistakes.

"He pushes very hard for the win every race and mistakes can happen when you race like that.

"Yes, he made might have made a mistake in Barcelona and one early on again in Canada, and because they have happened in a short period of time it looks very dramatic, but I don't think it affects him.

"He is still one of the top guys out there and he is going to be very strong, fighting for the championship for sure."