Fernando Alonso says McLaren capitalised on the rare opportunity the Hungarian Grand Prix presented, after finishing in sixth place.
The Woking-based outfit moves off the bottom spot in the constructors’ standings with the result, and Stoffel Vandoorne also finished in the points in P10.
With McLaren still lacking power from the Honda engine, the twisty Hungaroring was a rare chance for McLaren to exploit the strengths of its MCL32 chassis.
Alonso lined up seventh on the grid and enjoyed an intense battle with Carlos Sainz Jr., eventually getting ahead of the Toro Rosso – and was helped by Daniel Ricciardo’s early retirement.
“We were probably looking at seventh or eighth position today, but with Ricciardo out of the race, sixth place became possible, and we grabbed it,” he said.
“Still, we worked for that result all weekend – no mistakes, good practice sessions, strong qualifying, and then a perfectly executed race.
“There are three or four weekends in a season where we can be competitive, so we need to maximise those and fully capitalise on our potential – and that’s exactly what we did this weekend.
“The battle with Carlos was a close-run thing. We were together at the start, at the restart after the Safety Car; we came into the pits together, we exited together.
“I knew I had two laps where I could really push and stress the new tyres a little bit. I tried to do that with some kamikaze moves at times because, after those initial two laps, I knew it was going to be impossible. It worked out fine.
“Also, the fastest lap at the end of the race was a surprise – a gift – but one we’ll take. It was definitely a good race, so let’s go into the summer break with smiles on our faces.”
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