Horror crash in Spa ends Alonso’s race at first corner

Fernando Alonso got caught up in a terrifying crash at the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday, which ended his race on the very first corner.

Romain Grosjean was the culprit behind the chaos at the Spa circuit, which began when the Renault driver ran wide on the start-finish straight, pushing McLaren's Lewis Hamilton onto the grass. The wheels of the two cars touched, which sent Grosjean flying over the Ferrari of Alonso, which was already headed into turn one.

Hamilton then ploughed into the back of Alonso, sending his car spinnning around and off the track.

Fortunately, none of the drivers were injured, although Alonso was sent for a routine medical check-up.

Grosjean was fined 50,000 euros and given a one-race ban for his part in the incident.

McLaren's Jenson Button went on to win the race, although Alonso remains the chamionship leader, with a haul of 164 points. Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel is in second place, with 140 points. With eight out of 20 races left to run, things are looking good for the Spaniard, who took the world title in 2005 and 2006.

"I'm disappointed because of the points lost," said Alonso after the race. "But I'm also lucky that I can be in the car in five days at Monza because looking at the image, we were turning in so you could have a problem with your hands or even your head because [Grosjean's] car was so close. [...] It was difficult to imagine how the hit could be so big or how a car could be on you so quickly," he said.