Fernando Alonso will occupy the front row of the grid for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix but is not harbouring dreams of a first victory since the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix.
Alonso and Aston Martin continued their strong start to the season as the Spaniard qualified third in Jeddah behind Red Bull's Sergio Perez and the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc after defending world champion Max Verstappen failed to make it out of Q2 because of a driveshaft issue.
Leclerc's 10-place grid penalty will see him start 12th, promoting Alonso to his first front row start since last season's Canadian Grand Prix for Alpine.
Alonso endured a disappointing race on that occasion, finishing ninth.
Though Alonso is confident of greater fortune in the Aston Martin on Sunday, the two-time world champion does not believe he can challenge Perez for victory and anticipates eventually being caught by Verstappen, who will start 15th.
"I don't know. I think we are not in that position yet," the 41-year-old said when asked if he felt he could beat Perez. "I think on pure pace, I think Red Bull is in another league. And I think we have to concentrate more on the teams behind.
"So Ferrari will be very strong. Mercedes, they are strong, and also Alpine, they are fast here. So I think our race is just behind us. We saw today, Max probably was in his league today in qualifying and he could not complete the qualifying with a mechanical issue apparently, so we will try to take the opportunity for sure.
"I don't want to sound pessimistic but if we see the pace the whole weekend in free practice, we see the Bahrain race, we have to be honest with ourselves and know that Red Bull is a little bit ahead of everyone. So that's not, let's say, the target tomorrow, you know, to fight for the win with Checo.
"But as I said before, Formula One is not exact mathematics, you know, anything can happen and today no one of us will put Verstappen P15, but these things happen sometimes.
"So, for us, the most important thing is to score points. We are starting both cars in the top five. We try to finish both cars in the top five and keep accumulating points for the constructors' championship. That's the main goal for Aston Martin this year.
"I think Max will come eventually in the race. They have this advantage. I don't know which race it was last year that he started last, so he changed the power unit and still finished P2 or even won the race. So, I think tomorrow, there is no doubt that he will be in the podium, probably, minimum."
Verstappen won from 10th in Hungary last season and 14th in Belgium, results that underlined his dominance once Leclerc's title challenge dissipated, and he is not giving up hope of another charge through the field even at a tight circuit where overtaking may prove difficult.
"We now have a bit more work ahead of us tomorrow, but it is what it is," said Verstappen.
"It is a long championship and we will stay positive. I think a win is tricky from that position but I will try to score as many points as possible. It will be hard to get to the front, but we won't give up.
"Anything is possible at this track, we have seen some crazy things here, but we have to be realistic. It will be tough but we have good pace so, for sure, we will move forward."
Marquez hit with double long-lap penalty for Portimao smash
Marc Marquez has been hit with a double long-lap penalty following his Portuguese Grand Prix crash on Sunday.
The six-time MotoGP champion started on pole in Portimao, but a costly mistake brought his race to a premature end.
Marquez ploughed into Miguel Oliveira at Turn 3 early in the race, resulting in both riders dramatically crashing out.
The Spaniard also forced Jorge Martin wide, which saw his compatriot lose several positions.
Marquez could miss the next round in Argentina, as he waits to discover if he suffered a fracture to the first metacarpal bone in his right hand.
If he is passed fit for that race, the 30-year-old will face a penalty after the stewards ruled that he was guilty of irresponsible riding.
Marquez said: "Honestly speaking, I am not worried about Argentina. Today, the most important is that Miguel is okay. Because I did a big mistake on Turn [3], in the first part, and this created everything.
"I braked and had a massive lock with the front tyre. That meant that I released the brakes. My intention was to go to the left side. But the bike stayed on a lean and I couldn't avoid going to the right side.
"I was able to avoid Martin but couldn't avoid Miguel. I was very worried for him because the contact was big.
"I already said it personally – but I want to say sorry to him, to his team, to the Portuguese fans. I have been penalised for that mistake with a double long lap penalty, that I completely, completely agree.
"But apart from that, I have a few injuries – my hand, my knee. We need to check. Let's see. At the moment it's not the most important, my situation."
Oliveira suffered from a contusion in his right leg on home soil in a race that was won by Francesco Bagnaia, who completed a double after his success in the sprint race on Saturday.
Bagnaia praises new Ducati after claiming MotoGP win in Portugal
Francesco Bagnaia praised his new Ducati bike, saying it suits his riding style as he clinched victory at the Portuguese Grand Prix on Sunday.
On the first race weekend of the new MotoGP season, Bagnaia won the inaugural sprint race on Saturday, before also taking first place a day later.
The defending world champion finished ahead of Maverick Vinales and fellow Italian Marco Bezzecchi, and expressed his delight with his new bike at the post-race press conference.
"We worked so well on the tests that everything was prepared for the race, we were so on the limit," he said. "Compare that to two years ago and last year, the race time was so much faster.
"It was quite tough, the tyres were working so perfectly... I'm happy, everything went perfectly. This new bike suits very well my riding style, better than the old one, so we are fighting in a good direction."
Bezzecchi was surprised with his third-place finish to begin his second season after being the best rookie in MotoGP last year with 111 points, more than the other four rookie riders combined (Fabio Di Giannantonio: 24; Raul Fernandez: 14; Remy Gardner: 13 and Darryn Binder: 12).
"I am very happy. It's always nice to have some good results," the 24-year-old said. "Honestly, I wasn't expecting this because it's a track where I've never been so fast in Moto2 or in the previous year. Also, last year I was very slow, but this year I made a step and I'm very happy.
"The race was fantastic. I was able to escape the group behind me, and I was trying to catch Maverick but he was a little bit faster than me, especially at the end. But this gave me the possibility to escape, to have a good gap, and finally to get this podium."
Spaniard Vinales held on for second place, and is optimistic of competing at the front again in next week's Argentinian Grand Prix.
"I've been quite fast in Argentina for all the years," he said. "I don't know, I don't want to put anything on my head. I will go there, do the job, take out the maximum of the bike and then we will see.
"What I am sure of is that if we can get the maximum from the weekend, we will be fighting at the front."
Bagnaia completes Portimao double after Marquez crashes out
Francesco Bagnaia made it a perfect start to the MotoGP season by winning the Portuguese Grand Prix after Marc Marquez crashed out.
Bagnaia was victorious in the inaugural MotoGP sprint race on Saturday and the reigning champion crossed the line first again in Portimao a day later.
The Ducati rider started in second place behind Marquez, but the Spaniard's race came to an early end when he lost control and collided with Miguel Oliveira.
Oliveira had taken an early lead after starting in fourth place on home soil, but Marquez's mistake left him heading for the medical tent for a check-up after he was sent flying off his bike at Turn 3.
It was subsequently confirmed six-time world champion Marquez had suffered a fractured first metacarpal bone in his right hand.
Italian Bagnaia took over at the front on lap two following moves on Oliveira and Jorge Martin, then went on to complete a double ahead of Maverick Vinales.
Marco Bezzecchi joined his compatriot Bagnaia on the podium by taking third place, with Johann Zarco nipping in to take fourth in the closing stages ahead of Alex Marquez.
Martin crashed out with five laps to go at Turn 2 as Bagnaia took command and made it a dream start to the defence of his title.
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