The story of Fernando Alonso and Ferrari started and ended in the Middle East. But, having marked his arrival with a bang with victory on his debut in Bahrain 2010, the Spaniard departed following a damp squib of a ninth place in last November's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, following a final stint in which he barely seemed to be trying - a fact betrayed by very uncharacteristic steering traces.

It was a sad way for Alonso to bid farewell to Maranello, ending a five-season innings of increasing frustration.

Alonso's time at Ferrari was neither a success nor a failure. The Spaniard generally delivered superb performances in his near-century of race starts for the Scuderia. He won his first race, was twice in the hunt for the world championship at the final race of the season and, in 2012, produced one of the most consistently remarkable seasons in the history of grand prix racing.