Fernando Alonso didn’t stay around long after the last Grand Prix in Spain as he had to shoot off to Indianapolis for the start of practice the following day. But he left behind him a team whose difficult season had been boosted by the former World Champion’s stunning qualifying performance.
Against all the odds Alonso qualified seventh in Barcelona, reminding everyone of his class – but also pinpointing that power unit issues aside, the McLaren MCL32 must be a pretty good chassis.
Monaco is supposed to be the best track of the year for McLaren, and on Thursday in practice Stoffel Vandoorne and substitute driver Jenson Button showed that a spot in Q3 is not impossible as they took 11th and 12th places.