Ron Dennis, the team principal of the McLaren Mercedes Formula One team, let one very large cat out of a very expensive bag after Lewis Hamilton’s retirement from the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai on Sunday.

Speaking about the disastrous decision to delay Hamilton’s tyre change, which led to the British rookie sliding off the track while trying to get into the pits, Dennis said something that will have convinced Fernando Alonso’s supporters that there is a conspiracy within the team against their hero.

“The problem was rain and his [Hamilton’s] tyres were in the worst condition,” Dennis said to a group of British journalists in the paddock at the circuit. “But we weren’t at all fazed about Kimi [Raikkonen, of Ferrari]. We weren’t racing Kimi, we were basically racing Fernando.”

Slip of the tongue it may have been — there were efforts by McLaren to explain it away — but, in one stroke, Dennis had made a nonsense of his claims to be treating his drivers equitably in the World Championship run-in. What is more, Dennis’s remarks have turned into articles of faith the deep suspicions in Spain and elsewhere that McLaren could be deliberately doctoring Alonso’s car to present the championship to Hamilton.

In large parts of the motor-racing world, it is regarded as gospel that Alonso is battling against not only Hamilton but also the whole McLaren team for his third consecutive drivers’ championship. It is possible that the public will never know for certain exactly what is going on in a team who have been torn apart by the feud between their drivers and between Alonso and Dennis.

One element that does seem to be becoming increasingly obvious is that McLaren as an organisation have, in recent weeks, turned their collective backs on Alonso. The team is going through the motions with their unhappy Spaniard, but are deriving very little pleasure from the process and it is undoubtedly the case that, as a group, they would prefer to see Hamilton win the title.

In truth, there is little evidence to suggest that Alonso had anything other than a clean slate when he arrived at McLaren. But his unsportsmanlike attitude to the challenge of trying to beat Hamilton, plus his allegedly threatening behaviour towards Dennis and recent refusal to deny suggestions of “car-fixing”, have pushed him beyond the pale.

McLaren go to Interlagos next week for the Brazilian Grand Prix in a strange condition indeed. The team will be delighted if Hamilton wins his maiden world title, but the celebrations will be muted if Alonso snatches it from the Briton at the death.

The saddest part about the affair is that Alonso will have made history himself if he does prevail in Brazil. He will have become the first driver since Juan Manuel Fangio to win consecutive titles with different constructors, but the team who gave him the car to do it will barely, if at all, share in his joy.

During another trying weekend for Alonso in China, he explained his view of McLaren. “I was expecting a lot more,” Alonso said. “From the outside, the team had a different image: serious, but very professional. I improved the car as much as I could. Last year they were fighting to make it into Q3 [the third section of qualifying] and this year they are going to win the [drivers’] championship, and the truth is that the treatment has not been very good.”

When asked if the way he had been treated was deserving of a two-time champion, Alonso said: “Not a double champion, but a normal person.” The Times, London