Fernando Alonso did not take long to show his obvious talents whilst carrying out his one-off test for Jaguar-Racing last Thursday at Silverstone.

The Spaniard, borrowed from Renault to act as a benchmark for Jaguar’s contracted test and reserve drivers Andre Lotterer and James Courtney who ran on Tuesday and Wednesday, drove an R3-Cosworth contender for 57 laps.

And in tricky, changeable conditions, the 21-year-old set a 1:22.78, putting him third on the timesheets behind pacesetter Rubens Barrichello and Toyota’s Alan McNish. He was also just over a tenth quicker than countryman and works Jaguar pilot Pedro de la Rosa.

The team was reportedly “very impressed” with his car control and technical feedback, and was able to take a lot from the test with its efforts to groom and develop Lotterer and Courtney into top drivers.

The day’s running with Alonso was just a one-off however, and the youngster will now return to his regular role as test driver for Renault Sport.