Alonso aiming for top five finish

Fernando Alonso says he is aiming for a top five finish at the Japanese Grand Prix following a strong qualifying run on Saturday

The Singapore Grand Prix winner will start the race from fourth position after finishing some four tenths of a second behind pole-setter Lewis Hamilton.

Alonso admitted his car's pace with fuel onboard was encouraging and he is targeting a strong result tomorrow.

"We can be happy with fourth place, which is a good result and the work we did yesterday certainly paid us back today," said Alonso.

"We had a bit of trouble in Q2, but in Q3 with fuel on board the car felt good, which is encouraging for the race tomorrow and I think we can realistically aim for a top five finish."

Teammate Nelsinho Piquet failed to match Alonso's performance, the Brazilian going out in Q2 after a mistake during his final run.

"I am very disappointed as I made a mistake in Q2 and I wasn't able to make it through to Q3," he said. "It's all the more frustrating because the car was really working well and I was feeling comfortable with it.

"I won't give up, but I know that the race tomorrow will be difficult and so I will do all that I can to try and fight through the field."