Fernando Alonso believes he is driving better than at any point of his storied F1 career, something he says makes it "really disappointing" he does not have the car to challenge for points or podiums.
McLaren and Honda are at a critical point in their relationship, with the Japanese manufacturer significantly off the front of the grid for the third year in a row. Alonso ran tenth for much of the Australian Grand Prix but said after the race McLaren is last in the pecking order -- even behind Sauber and their year-old Ferrari power unit.
The Spaniard eventually retired from the race with a suspension failure but said his performance before then had been the best of his 16-year career so far.
When asked in Melbourne if he could take any positives from the race, he said: "Not many. I think I feel very well prepared. I feel I'm driving at my best in my career, and I'm fighting for one point. So really disappointing.
"Obviously the car is very uncompetitive at the moment and we were in the points all race long, but huge fuel saving that I had to do. It was a big surprise to be P10. I was driving at my maximum, I felt confident but the car is very, very uncompetitive at the moment."
Alonso's future has come under scrutiny in recent weeks, with former Red Bull driver Mark Webber predicting his friend will quit the sport before the end of 2017. The Spaniard is in the third and final year of his contract with McLaren but has spent its entirety fighting for scraps in the lower reaches of the points.