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Fernando Alonso says McLaren can only hope for a miracle in Melbourne

Fernando Alonso says the only thing he and McLaren can hope for at the Australian Grand Prix is to "try and do miracles" after enduring a frustrating first Friday of 2017.

McLaren came to Australia expecting to struggle with its underpowered and unreliable Honda power unit. The Japanese manufacturer has admitted after pre-season it was "a little bit scared" by the performance gap to its rivals at this stages and that deficit was laid bare in a brutal fashion on the opening day of the 2017 season.

Alonso's day was not without delays, either, and he finished with just 19 laps to his name.