Alonso qualified down in 12th position, 2.5 seconds off the pole position time, as McLaren's lack of power from its Honda engine was highlighted over the 2.2km straight of the track.

Alonso, whose top speed on the straight was only better than that of Kevin Magnussen's Renault, admitted the deficit was no surprise.

The Spaniard was 27km/h down on the fastest car, the Williams of Valtteri Bottas (366.1km/h).

"The car works in the corners, but on the straight we are losing seven or eight tenths," said Alonso, who failed to reach Q3 for the first time in four races.

"On full throttle and with the steering wheel straight we are losing all that."

He added: "It's frustrating but it's not something we didn't know when we arrived here.

"The lack of power is obvious and on circuits like this we try to make do, especially in the race with other cars."

Despite the lack of top speed, Alonso believes there is still a chance to score points tomorrow.

"It will be hard but hopefully we can score some points. We have seen a lot of offs and a lot of accidents so it's all to play for.

"We have to stay on track and at any point you can find yourself in sixth or seventh with a bit of luck."

Teammate Jenson Button was knocked out in Q1 and will start the race from 19th place.