Spanish GP: Pastor Malonado calls qualifying accident 'very strange'

The Lotus driver failed to set a time in qualifying after losing control at Turn 3 on his first flying lap of Q1.

Maldonado, who won the 2012 Spanish GP for Williams, speared back across the track and hit the inside wall, damaging his Lotus's right-front corner.

"I think there was something wrong with the tyre temperature or pressure," he said.

"The car just skated, it's a very fast corner, and then I went over to the green path which is paint and is more slippery and I lost the car more over there.

"It was in the exit of the corner. The corner was already done. Normally all the drivers are running over that green paint, like me yesterday and always.

"It's a difficult part of the track but I think the problem came from something before."

Maldonado's team-mate Romain Grosjean qualified fifth - by far Lotus's best result of a so-far troubled 2014 season.

Rather than leaving Maldonado more frustrated because his car's potential had been wasted, the Venezuelan said Grosjean's pace actually left him encouraged for his chances of a fightback on Sunday.

"When you have a more competitive car you can see, even tomorrow, ways to recover," said Maldonado.

"The problem is when you don't have the chance to compete against the others. "Now we can compete, we can play with the strategy, we can do many good things."