Alguersuari sure of stronger race pace

The Toro Rosso driver qualified in 18th position and joined all the new teams in being knocked out of Q1.

The Spaniard, however, is confident that his car will work better in race trim.

"I knew it would be hard to make it to Q2," Alguersuari told Spanish television. "We had only one lap to do it and we had very little grip. The car has nothing to do with the one we had in testing, so I did what I could.

"We'll see where can be in the race. I made a mistake on my good lap with soft tyres. We'll see how qualifying goes in Australia."

When asked if he race would be stronger for him, he said: "I'm sure. Tomorrow we'll be fine."

Alguersuari admitted he paid the price for having focused mostly on heavy fuel runs during winter testing.

"We've worked with a heavy car during all the pre-season and it shows. We saw it coming. But anyway, we have to work on the car a lot. I think we'll be better in Australia."