Paul Di Resta will throw caution to the wind in bid for points

Paul di Resta is ready to be aggressive in today's Hungarian Grand Prix after admitting to a lack of adventure in qualifying.

Following a strong practice performance at the Hungaroring in his Force India, Di Resta appeared poised for a top-ten grid slot.

However, the Scot was forced to settle for 11th, missing out on a place in the final ten-minute qualifying session by just a tenth of a second to Sauber's Sergio Perez.

Without a point in his last eight races, Di Resta is eager to make amends as he said: "We definitely didn't maximise our qualifying performance.

"We had a bit of an issue in the first session on the (faster] options (tyres], and from then on we were a bit safe.

"My final lap in the second session wasn't quite there, so maybe I should have been a bit more adventurous.

"But at the same time we're 11th, although I was hoping to be a little higher up, we're on the good side of the track and definitely within fighting range.

"It's still a good position to score some points, so we'll go with an aggressive strategy. I think that's the way it has to be."

The flip side for Di Resta is that he has endured his fair share of trouble this season, so he also appreciates he has to keep his nose clean.

"It is about that," added Di Resta.

"Normally in the past you don't see much happening here, but given the tyre degradation that could change.

"It will still be difficult to overtake, but if somebody is in an extreme degradation situation, things might alter and you will have to go for it.

"As for the race overall, in practice we've shown we can be competitive over long runs, and I'm optimistic we can carry that through to the race."

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was fifth, surprisingly out-qualified by team-mate Felipe Massa in fourth.

And the Spaniard said afterwards that fourth was the best Ferrari could have hoped for.

He added that having Brazilian Massa in front of him also means prudence may have to prevail.

"It definitely changes the way you look at the race. But we're not thinking about the championship, we're taking risks and racing very aggressively. We have nothing to lose," Alonso said. "I expect McLaren to be strong."