Alonso says Ferrari needs major overhaul

Fernando Alonso was not happy after qualifying almost a full second off pole position in Malaysia on Saturday. Despite being the fifth-quickest car on the Sepang starting grid Ferrari is essentially out to lunch.

“We weren’t quick enough in Australia and we are not here in Malaysia either, at least not enough to fight for pole position," the Champion of 2005 and 2006 said after qualifying.

“From what we have seen over these two races, there are two teams who have worked better than us over the winter and clearly we have to make some progress in terms of performance and there is no secret about that.

“We need to make a step of some quality, we need to be aggressive in our development to make up lost ground. At the same time, we have to stay calm and concentrated and, in the meantime, bring home as many points as possible, exploiting every opportunity that comes our way.

“The championship is very long and, last year, we saw how the situation can change continuously from one race to the next.