Aston Martin “came alive” in F1 qualifying after messy FP3

Aston Martin’s pace was an unknown factor heading into qualifying after Alonso and team-mate Lance Stroll finished 12th and 14th respectively in final practice.

Alonso also barely scraped by in Q1, with Stroll even eliminated in 18th. But in Q2 the two-time world champion came to the fore with third, under three tenths shy of pacesetter Max Verstappen.

In a disrupted Q3 shootout the Spaniard then grabbed a second starting spot alongside Red Bull’s polesitter Sergio…