一个令人难以置信的匈牙利GP沟纹e overshadowed by Lewis Hamilton headlines

While Lewis Hamilton rightly took the headlines, Zhou Gunayu also impressed with an incredible P5 during Hungary qualifying.

If you asked every F1 fan to name a team most likely to not feature in Q3 this weekend, a fair few of them would have said Alfa Romeo.

It would be a reasonable prediction as well with the Swiss outfit making it to the final stage of qualifying on just one occasion this season back at the Miami Grand Prix.

But it became clearer as qualifying went on that the Alfa car has finally found a track that it likes.

For significant portions of Q2, Zhou topped the times and while he did not do so in Q3, he did finish P5 to produce his best ever qualifying. Vallteri Bottas meanwhile will start directly behind his team-mate on the grid with Charles Leclerc separating the pair.

Both drivers outpaced a Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull on the way to a starting position that puts them in good stead for Sunday’s race.

Zhou said the secret to his success was executing the plan when it mattered.

“I mean the team firstly gave us a really competitive car over the weekend,” he told Sky Sports F1. “From my side, I was able to execute it when it mattered, especially on the final stints on all the compounds from Q1 to Q3. So that was a lot of pressure.

“My lap time was deleted for track limits so I just gave it everything and there was not much left on the lap. So happy with that.”

As for the race, Zhou believed a top six finish was possible.

“We will try to give everything we can in keeping our track position or making some gains in position further up the track ahead,” the 24-year-old said. “Otherwise we need to make sure we are focused on our own race.

“I’m sure they [Ferrari] have a little bit stronger package than us but we know we can fight inside the top six.”

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