Nico Hulkenberg would be open to racing alongside Fernando Alonso at Renault in Formula 1 next year, believing the Spaniard's signing would be "good for the team".

Alonso's McLaren contract expires at the end of the year, and the Spaniard re-stated his desire to be with a winning operation for 2018 on Thursday ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix.

Alonso has been linked with a return to Renault for next year, with whom he won both of his F1 titles in 2005 and 2006.

When asked if Alonso arriving at the team for 2018 would be a chance to prove his talent, Hulkenberg agreed, saying he would relish the chance to go up against one of F1's biggest names.

"More of a chance, and a good reference for me to measure myself with the guy who for years is considered to be one of the best in the world and F1," Hulkenberg said.

"I'd be open to that, sure. I think I can learn from him and I think it would be good for the team, for the whole project as well to get someone like him on-board."

Hulkenberg said that he did not closely follow Alonso's performance in the Indianapolis 500, but believes that the McLaren driver's performance with such limited testing proves the quality of the F1 field.

"I didn't follow it that much to be honest, but I was quite impressed," Hulkenberg said. "I don't know anything about Indy, I have to say, but I didn't think he could just come in and brush the other guys off and go home with a win. I didn't follow it too closely but it looked pretty much like that.

"I thought to myself, the example him going to Indy, he had a good chance fo winning that race. What I did a couple of years ago at Le Mans, it just shows the drivers in F1, the quality, it's right up there, and we're still the best drivers in the world.

"That shows if you go and explore a different racing series with very little time but be on the money and be competitive, it's just good confirmation of that."