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The two-time champion had been linked with a Ferrari seat for some time, with Kimi Raikkonen delaying an announcement about his plans after the 2009 season.
But the Finn extended his contract with Ferrari until the 2010 season, closing the door to Alonso at least until 2011.
Alonso said he was not too surprised by Ferrari's announcement.
"No, because there was talk that it would be like that, so in a way I knew that they would renew his contract," Alonso told Cadena Ser radio.
"And once you know it, you have to think of 2009. I was not too worried about 2010. The most important thing is too see what is the best place to be in 2009."
The Spaniard is yet to announce his plans for 2009, with Renault, BMW and Honda hoping to secure his services.
The Renault driver insisted the French squad are his first choice, but he made it clear his future could be at Ferrari if the chance comes up.
"As I always say, Renault is my first option because I know the people and I know things can be done right here, even though this year things haven't gone well," he added. "And if not, we'll see what we can do.
"I'm 27 now and life changes a lot and if I race in Formula One for another eight or ten years I might get the chance again to end up there (at Ferrari)."
The Spanish driver said he has not seen much of Renault's car for 2009, and he admitted he has to be cautious when judging the team's optimism for next season.
"I haven't seen much, because we are focused on the remaining races, but I'm sure it inspires confidence because at this point of the year every team is nearly completely sure that next year they will do well," he said. "They are all very optimistic and it's up to you to believe them or not.
"Normally I believe them, because they've given me a lot of joy and two cars to win titles with, so it's easier to believe them than others."
Alonso is currently in seventh place in the championship and is yet to climb onto the podium in 2008
(above)Felipe Massa delighted after winning the European GP,Valencia,Spain| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 57 | 1:35:32.339 | 1 | 10 |
| 2 | 22 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 57 | +5.6 secs | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | 4 | Robert Kubica | BMW Sauber | 57 | +37.3 secs | 3 | 6 |
| 4 | 23 | Heikki Kovalainen | McLaren-Mercedes | 57 | +39.7 secs | 5 | 5 |
| 5 | 11 | Jarno Trulli | Toyota | 57 | +50.6 secs | 7 | 4 |
| 6 | 15 | Sebastian Vettel | STR-Ferrari | 57 | +52.6 secs | 6 | 3 |
| 7 | 12 | Timo Glock | Toyota | 57 | +67.9 secs | 13 | 2 |
| 8 | 7 | Nico Rosberg | Williams-Toyota | 57 | +71.4 secs | 9 | 1 |
| 9 | 3 | Nick Heidfeld | BMW Sauber | 57 | +82.1 secs | 8 | |
| 10 | 14 | Sebastien Bourdais | STR-Ferrari | 57 | +89.7 secs | 10 | |
| 11 | 6 | Nelsinho Piquet | Renault | 57 | +92.7 secs | 15 | |
| 12 | 10 | Mark Webber | Red Bull-Renault | 56 | +1 Lap | 14 | |
| 13 | 16 | Jenson Button | Honda | 56 | +1 Lap | 16 | |
| 14 | 21 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Force India-Ferrari | 56 | +1 Lap | 18 | |
| 15 | 8 | Kazuki Nakajima | Williams-Toyota | 56 | +1 Lap | 11 | |
| 16 | 17 | Rubens Barrichello | Honda | 56 | +1 Lap | 19 | |
| 17 | 9 | David Coulthard | Red Bull-Renault | 56 | +1 Lap | 17 | |
| Ret | 1 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 45 | Engine | 4 | |
| Ret | 20 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Ferrari | 41 | Accident | 20 | |
| Ret | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Renault | 0 | Accident damage | 12 |
The former double world champion suffered a disappointing year after moving to McLaren in 2007 while he has failed to reignite the glory days with a relatively uncompetitive Renault this season.
However Honda have not matched France-based Renault in 2008 and speculation still reigns that the 27-year-old driver will switch to ferrari, perhaps in 2010 when Scuderia world champion Kimi Raikkonen retires.
That raises the possibility of a one-year deal between the Spaniard and Japanese-owned Honda.
The Guardian said veteran racer Rubens Barichello would be the one to make way for Alonso in 2009.
"Fernando is a wonderful driver who would be a fantastic asset to any of the top teams, including this one," said Honda chief executive Nick Fry.
"The job [team principal] Ross [Brawn] and I have is to build a world championship-winning team."
My Take-
Well looking at the present situation.....staying at Renault would be better(he has no where to go...Mclaren-no seat,Ferrari-no seat,BMW-no seat[i think]....).....but again HONDA is not a bad idea....rather i would say a brilliant idea....Jenson Button would become an brilliant and competitive team mate and Honda has the resources but their efforts are not gettin in the proper direction...Alonso's entry could make things change...for good......my intuition says ....Honda+Alonso would be brilliant...as Renault team is really very stingy(if not team at least the CEO of Renault Auto. Carlos Goshn...who isn't much keen on investing in f-1) hence they have been running in a bad form ...mainly due to lack of proper development due to limited funds.....Even in 2005 Renault may not have won the championship but thanks to the underperforming Ferrari and the quick but unreliable Mclaren-Mercedes!!!
