Fernando Alonso is without doubt the most complete driver on the Formula One grid today. Not only is his speed and consistency good enough to rival the sport's greats, but his ability to juggle tyre management, race strategy, fuel consumption and overall pace over the course of a whole race distance makes him one of the most deadly, clinical and cunning weapons the sport has witnessed this decade.

Like many of his era, Alonso began life in Formula One with backmarkers Minardi, following just two seasons of single-seater racing. Having won the World Series by Nissan in 1999 and coming fourth in his debut F3000 season in 2000, he was promoted to a Formula One seat for 2001. In encouraging surroundings, Alonso was able to learn the ropes of F1 in the pressure-free and expectation-free environment of Minardi. Despite driving the grid's worst car, he regularly beat much more capable opposition. Mistakes were rare, and his team-mates posed little resistance. 11th place in the Japanese Grand Prix was the highlight of his season, finishing ahead of five other drivers, while tenth place in Germany was his best finish.

Another crucial step along the road to becoming a top F1 driver was being signed as Renault's test driver for 2002, taking a year out from racing but gathering more knowledge at a well-funded top-notch team. When he was promoted to a race seat in 2003 he was ready and able, and was hardly back on the grid before setting the world alight with stand-out performances.

After scoring points on his Renault debut, he took pole position in his second race in Malaysia, before racing to a distant third on the Sunday. He would record another two podium finishes in the following three races, elevating him to as high as third in the drivers' championship. Although engine-related reliability problems resulted in numerous retirements, he kept scoring points, and after taking his second pole position of the year at Hungary, secured his maiden win with a dominant drive, beating rivals Räikkönen and Montoya by 16 seconds.

Despite his best efforts, a handful of podiums was all Alonso could manage from the 2004 Renault, despite leading numerous races. A podium finish in Australia was followed by poor grid positions in Malaysia and Bahrain, but both were converted into points-scoring finishes, before taking consistent top-eights over the remainder of the season. Reliability problems cost him two further podium finishes in Canada and the United States, while victory could have been his in Monaco but for needless accident while lapping Ralf Schumacher. In France, he pushed the dominant Michael Schumacher hard for victory, with the German having to rely on a cunning four-stop strategy to beat his rival. Podiums in Germany and Hungary were followed by two consecutive retirements, both in potential race-winning positions, before rounding out the year with three points finishes.

The lessons learned in 2004 made Alonso an even fiercer competitor in 2005, and with a competitive car at his disposal, didn't need to be asked twice to perform. After scoring a podium finish from 13th on the grid at the season opener, Alonso recorded three consecutive wins before a second place in Spain. Tyre wear problems in Monaco demoted him to fourth before bouncing back with a last-lap win in Europe after Kimi Räikkönen retired on the final lap. Alonso then recorded his only retirement of the season with a rare error in Canada when he kissed a wall, damaging his rear suspension.

With everything remaining as you were following the United States GP debacle, Alonso began the second half of the season with a 22-point lead over Kimi Räikkönen. He soon had that extended with a dominant win in France, before extending his lead further with second place and a victory in the following two races. A first-lap tangle allowed allowed Räikkönen to briefly close the gap on Alonso, but ending the season with six consecutive podium finishes ensured him a comfortable title in the end. Rounding the season off in style, he won the Chinese Grand Prix to secure Renault the constructors' championship, having taken the drivers' title two races earlier in Brazil, becoming the youngest champion in the sport's history.

Alonso's meteoric rise to the top of the Formula One world continued unabated in 2006, but this time around had to fend off the feisty challenge of one Michael Schumacher. Like 2005, the reliability of the Renault was almost bullet-proof, while speed-wise it was equally competitive. Starting the season with nine consecutive podium finishes, six of them being outright victories, he opened up a healthy 25-point cushion by the Canadian Grand Prix. After such a flawless performance in the first half of the year, things went slightly downhill for the Spaniard in the United States, taking fifth place and a valuable four points for his first non-podium finish in almost a year.

The return to Europe saw Alonso take second in France, trailing Schumacher by ten seconds, before another fifth place in Germany narrowed his lead to 11 points. A certain victory in Hungary was denied by a faulty wheel nut, while a definite third place blew up with an engine failure in Monza, with the failures costing him 16 points in total. Thankfully the bad luck also struck Ferrari and Schumacher, and a costly engine failure mid-way through the Japanese Grand Prix handed victory to Alonso, opening his championship lead to 10 points and all but securing him his second title. Second place at the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix was enough to ensure the title went to Spain again, by a margin of 13 points.

A reinvigorated McLaren welcome Alonso to their camp for the 2007 season and with a hugely competitive car, Spain's hero had his third consecutive fight for a world championship. Victories in Malaysia and Monaco started his season, along with two other podium finishes, before slumping to seventh in the Canadian Grand Prix after a badly-timed safety car. His championship hopes took another hit when he suffered a gearbox failure in qualifying for the French Grand Prix before recovering to seventh, but was soon back to winning ways with a superb drive in Europe to nick the victory from Massa in the final laps of the race. He showed his class again at Monza to dominate team-mate Hamilton and win, but a spin in the rain at Japan ultimately cost him the championship as he ended the season a point behind Kimi Räikkönen.

A less than cordial relationship with McLaren management resulted in Alonso returning to Renault in 2008 and despite a poor car, took consistent points finishes. Regular updates to the car allowed Alonso to take two consecutive victories in Singapore and Japan, the former albeit as a result of Nelson Piquet's infamous crash early in the race. Second place in the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix elevated Alonso to an admirable fifth place in the championship, with over three times the points of his team-mate.

Despite their capable budget and impressive facilities, the 2009 regulations change did nothing to lift Renault back to the top of the field with the French manufacturer ending the season with the slowest car on the grid. Nevertheless, the handicap of having a slow car did little to deter Alonso, and kept banging in consistent points finishes, including a miraculous pole position in Hungary and an equally surprising podium finish at the Singapore Grand Prix, his one and only of the season. In the end he finished the year on 26 points in ninth place, a far cry from the 134 he scored in 2006.

Decade highs:
Double championship successes in 2005 and 2006
15 consecutive podium finishes between Turkey 2005 and Canada 2006
Stunning victory in Europe 2007, overtaking Felipe Massa just five laps from the end
Steriotypical Alonso victory in Japan 2008 with an underperforming Renault

Decade lows:
Spectacular fall-out with McLaren in 2007, resulting in a move back to Renault
Woefully underperforming Renault in 2008 and 2009
Getting entangled in the infamous Crashgate saga of Singpaore 2008

2010s?
Moving to Ferrari for 2010, Alonso should return to winning ways next year, while anything near a car capable of winning the title should see the Spaniard challenge strongly. Countless more victories and more championships are more than deserving of his talent.