Racing Point driver Lance Stroll has described the qualifying session in China as "frustrating", after the Canadian's inability to get out of Q1.
Stroll wasn't quick enough to make the top 15 in Q1 and progress into Q2, and was eliminated for the seventh successive qualifying session.
"(It was) a frustrating session," Stroll said. "I don't feel I got as much out of it as I should, so it could definitely have been better. I'm not quite getting to grips with the car 100% yet and I made some mistakes on my lap, which cost us a couple of tenths and, in the end, that's all it takes.
"It's very, very tight in the midfield and every tenth counts. My race pace is generally pretty good and I believe we can be stronger tomorrow, but when it comes to Saturdays, we need to sort a few things out to really unlock that extra bit of performance.
"We started 16th in Australia and finished ninth, so there's no reason why we can't do the same thing here. It's a long race, I generally make good starts, and you can score points from wherever you start on the grid, so that's what I'm aiming to do tomorrow."
Stroll's team-mate Sergio Perez could only settle with Q2 and 12th-position on the grid, after just missing out on a shot at Q3 for Racing Point.