Fernando Alonso says McLaren's qualifying session went "better than expected" following their pre-seaso testing woes, but his 13th place start is still "not their target".
Alonso managed to get the most out of the car according to team boss Eric Boullier, in what the Frenchman described as a "perfect lap", but it was still only good enough for P13, but that's more than Alonso expected after their dreadful pre-season.
"After the difficulties we encountered in winter testing, we came to Melbourne without a clear idea of where we stood," said the Spaniard. "But we’ve more or less run through all the sessions without trouble – which is better than we’d expected.
“I had sufficient sets of tyres to be able to enjoy my laps in both Q1 and Q2. I was happy with the balance of the car and was able to really push it. That’s useful because, at the moment, we need to extract the maximum out of the package we have.
Gallery: Click here for the latest image from qualifying in Melbourne
“Tomorrow we’ll start 13th – in the middle of the pack – which is definitely not our target. Finishing the race is going to be tough. And, if we do finish it, to end up in a decent position we’ll need help from the weather and for other cars to encounter trouble."
Team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne didn't enjoy the same reliability Alonso did and was forced to abandon two flying laps, which meant he had one shot at setting a quick time which saw him finish just 18th.
"I had a fuel pressure issue in Q1 and had to abort my first two runs as the engine was running low on power," he explained. "That was a shame – because, after FP3, everything was heading in the right direction and I was feeling confident. But it’s always difficult when you only get one opportunity to set a time because you can’t take risks and have to make it really count.
"Still, we’ve made some good steps forward this weekend: Fernando and I both feel more comfortable in the car, and that confidence means we’re able to push it a little bit more.
"Obviously, we still have a lot of work to do, but we can take some positives from the potential we’ve shown so far this weekend, and I think we can have a good race tomorrow."
