On the week it is anticipated McLaren and Honda will announce a split at the end of the season, both engine supplier and lead driver Fernando Alonso are targeting strong results at the Singapore Grand Prix.

The street circuit at Marina Bay is anticipated to be one of the final realistic opportunities the British team can compete for points as the emphasis will be on a strong chassis rather than power much like it was in Hungary at the end of July when the Spaniard led the midfield in sixth.

The trend has continued to be more positive for McLaren and Honda in recent races, with regular updates to the engine, however, grid penalties and, as Alonso pointed out, poor reliability meant results haven't backed up the better performance.

"We knew the double-header of Spa and Monza would be difficult for us, but three DNFs out of four was still really disappointing," said the double world champion. "Still, we showed better pace than we anticipated, even though we couldn't convert that into points."

Switching focus to this weekend, Alonso, who finished seventh in the city-state race last year, added: "We've now put the European season behind us and we turn our attention to the flyaways which signal the final chapter of the season.

"Singapore is a great place to start, as it's one of the circuits on the calendar that suits our package better than others, and gives us a real chance for a more positive result."

Though the lack of performance may be less of a disadvantage around Marina Bay, the unique challenges of Singapore will still provide a major test for Honda, particularly after recent problems.

"It's tough – hot and humid, and hard on the cars and drivers," Alonso commented. "It's really fun though: bumpy, tight and challenging, but exhilarating when you get it right. You need a car with good traction on the slower corners and a high downforce set-up, so we definitely have a better chance there.

"We just need to make sure we also have the reliability."

The Head of Honda's F1 operation, Yusuke Hasegawa also acknowledged his team still have a key role to play in allowing McLaren the chance to maximise their potential this weekend.

"The car’s overall balance between the power unit and chassis will be the key to a good weekend, so our engineers are hard at work preparing the ideal set-up," he said. "Hopefully we can provide the drivers with a good package so they can be in the hunt for much-needed points."