Fernando Alonso gets the vote of confidence.

New Minardi boss, Paul Stoddart has said that F1 will be surprised by rookie Fernando Alonso this year.

Stoddart said: "Alonso has definitely got a future. I watched him very closely towards the end of the Formula 3000 season last year and he is special."

He added: "It's a one-year deal. Obviously we would like to get him for longer than that. I feel he's going to surprise quite a few people."

The Spaniard joins the team on a loan deal from Benetton.