P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Alonso: Aston Martin’s F1 qualifying pace a "massive surprise"
Fernando Alonso secured a sixth-place starting position on the grid for Saturday’s race in an intensely competitive Q3 session, posting a time of 1m29.542s. Despite being only 0.005s behind fifth and within half a tenth of third-place George Russell, Alonso had concerns about his AMR24’s one-lap speed but was pleasantly surprised by the outcome. The Spaniard expressed his satisfaction with the team’s unexpected competitiveness, especially after having doubts following winter testing about their qualifying pace. Aston Martin demonstrated good performance throughout the weekend, with Alonso mentioning the car’s improved responsiveness to setup changes at Bahrain’s challenging Sakhir circuit. While cautiously optimistic about the race given previous lackluster long runs, Alonso highlighted the need for continuous development to compete with the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes throughout the season.
