Alonso: I was unlucky and lucky!

Fernando Alonso was left unsure whether to thank or curse his lucky stars at the end of qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix following a fraught session that was ruined by a puncture, arguably losing him the chance to challenge for pole position.

It was a session of stepping into the unknown for Alonso, the team opting to keep a low profile in testing, only for the Spaniard to get back on form when qualifying arrived, taking the fight to Ferrari in the knockout sessions and duly setting himself up for a tense dice with his rivals.

However, whilst burning fuel in the early stages of the top ten shootout, Alonso out-braked himself at the first chicane, taking to the dirty escape road, a move that saw his right-rear Michelin tyre delaminate and force him into the pit lane.

Furthermore, he also damaged the rear of his car, making it feel nervous around the high-speed circuit. Nonetheless, having failed to improve with his first attempt on fresh tyres, Alonso re-pitted and made another last gasp effort, crossing the line with three seconds on the clock to spare and duly making it count by eventually scoring fifth on the grid.

However, Alonso was unsure how to take his result, admitting that he was unlucky with the circumstances but nonetheless lucky that it happened on a circuit where he is seemingly more competitive in relation to Ferrari than he has been on late.

"It was a day when I was lucky and unlucky," he said. "Obviously, the puncture cost me a chance to fight for the pole, with the damage it caused to the rear of the car. But equally, we had this problem at a circuit where we are competitive, and we can make up positions in the race.

"Things got very tight towards the end of Q3, and I had to really push to the limit on my out-lap to make sure I crossed the line in time. In the end, I did it with two seconds to spare. To qualify fifth after our problems is a strong start, and we know that our race pace is extremely competitive. Overall, once the damage has been fixed overnight, I think we can have a very strong race."