SHANGHAI, CHINA – APRIL 20: The Aston Martin driver will occupy the third position on the grid for Sunday’s race, trailing the dominant duo of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez of Red Bull.
Alonso seeks to rectify a disappointing Sprint race. Despite moving up to second place in the early laps, the Spaniard was later overtaken by faster drivers and suffered a puncture after a collision with Carlos Sainz Jr. of Ferrari.
This incident eliminated his chances of scoring points, and the stewards subsequently penalized Alonso with a ten-second time penalty for causing the collision with Sainz.
The 42-year-old experienced driver was pleased with his third position, but believes he could have contested second place if not for a sector full of errors at the start. He expressed after the session: “I’m unsure about the gap between Checo [Perez] and myself, but I made a mistake in turns one and two.
“So I had to decide whether to continue or abort the lap because I lost two tenths in two corners. We didn’t give up and kept pushing throughout the lap, resulting in a good lap time,” Alonso added.
He praised his team for implementing crucial adjustments to the car’s setup, which propelled him up the grid: “The car has improved since the Sprint race. We made some changes to the setup, so let’s see if we can convert that into points.
“I’m extremely pleased and proud of the team. We’re not giving up and, although we haven’t reached our desired position yet, we will keep moving forward.”
The Chinese Grand Prix will start at 08:00 BST (15:00 local time) on Sunday, April 21.
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