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I will be amazed if he gets into the top 5. He'll be going into the race with no experience of Indycar at all. Barrichello had 4 races experience, plus the test, plus the advantage of a brand new car that everyone was still learning.
It's not just about being fast, or about saving fuel, or about managing tyre wear, it's about all of them, plus racing wheel to wheel to wheel at 200+mph for 2.5 F1 races worth of time, on a changing racing line.
One mistake puts you in the wall, if it's your mistake, or someone else's that you're a passenger in. Hildebrand and Sato both learnt this less than a lap from winning in 2011 and 2012.
Alonso may have the speed, but he doesn't have the experience to break into the top 5 on merit without a huge slice of luck.

There's a lot of luck involved in oval racing. No doubt about that. Mario Andretti was a phenomenal race car driver but could only win there once in decades of trying.

Apparently Alonso is getting a trial run before the official qualifying.

its an all day session on May 3rd.

Not quite so bad now, I thought it stupid to throw him straight in, seems like some one share my concerns

There are a lot of one off drives at Indy every year and there are lots of practice and qualifying/pre-qualifying for the race. It's almost a month long process and I was fully expecting for Fernando to be at every session possible when it was first announced.

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There's almost a whole week of practice leading up to qualifying and the race. By the time the actual event rolls around, the only thing he won't have had a chance to practice is the actual wheel-to-wheel racing in an oval - everything else, I'm sure he'll have down pat.

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Just watching Indycar in Alabama live, and Fernando is there. He has a very warm welcome, and the TV is prominently featuring him, and he is now in the TV studio commenting with others and also getting advises in the process. He just smiles and likes it so much. Signs of his future?

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Personally I doubt it, I think he wants to do the Indy 500 but that's it.

That's what makes the most sense, that's what he's said is the case and I see no reason not to take him at his word.

There is always the chance that he really likes the INDY experience and decides to make the move. Heaven knows that between Ferreari's and McLaren's ineptitude over the years, Nando might like the idea driving a competitive in the US.

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I'm afraid a makeshift pit crew will prevent Alonso any chance of winning. I hope I'm wrong. My prediction is between 5th and 10th.

So many factors, it's really hard to tell at this point.

Last year Pippa Mann drove at the 500 and her pit crew was terrible. We were directly across from her stall and people near us were really noticing how bad they were.

While I agree with your point somewhat, I think Andretti has something to prove with such a major spotlight event, and will do whatever they can to make his run satisfactory. Like Lt. Drebin, I was impressed with the amount of TV time they gave him at the Alabama race yesterday. Interestingly, when asked how he felt Jensen felt about running at Monaco, he said "not happy".

I think Alonso likes to be "adored by his public" and a good result could well be the point he decides F1 is not so good after all. I see him fitting right in.

There is also a snipit on the main page of Brown saying they want to do Indy every year. It must be a disadvantage to just have the one gig, so could Alonso be the core of a new venture for Mclaren?