It will surely be frustrating to see Fernando Alonso far from a competitive place in the next Canadian Grand Prix, following quote from World Cup Formula 1. With Aston Martinthere he did one of his best races in 2023 and ended up close to the atomic Red Bull of Max Verstappen. And in 2025 it was seventh, but first of mortals in an undervalued test in the calculation of the season with a bad car. In 2026 the only objective will be to close the gap as much as possible with the middle zone, but he has made it clear that no one should expect anything. “Until race 14,” he said. Calendar in hand, that would be the Spanish Grand Prix in it MadRing.
Alonso, Newey, Verstappen and Hamilton, on the podium at Canada 2023.
As the first races of 2026 have passed, the general disappointment with the Aston Martin It has become a race against the elements to present some improvement. The green team passed the first screen of finishing a race, then that of eliminating vibrations and also that of finishing (in Miami) with the two team cars. The progress is there, although not what many expected with a mechanical leap. That, for the moment, will not happen. But because there is a plan.
The plan
It even sounds chimerical to think that there is a plan to not improve. But it is the script to follow. While Silverstone -team headquarters- and sakura -of Sling– They work hard on each of the AMR26 jumps, on the track the situation is different. No major performance developments are expected until well into (or after) the summer and Alonso He made it clear that it is not something that worries him too much. What’s more, it leaves him alone.
I am at peace because I understand the situation. The team explained to me that if we are 19th and 20th, one second behind the next car, nothing will change if we improve a few tenths for the next race.
“I’m at peace because I understand the situation. The team explained to me that if we are 19th and 20th, one second behind the next car, nothing will change if we improve a few tenths for the next race,” analyzed the Spaniard after the Miami Grand Prix. It also has to do with an F1 where each test is millimetered. “Each change places high stress on the system and the budget limit,” he admitted.
Fernando Alonso during the Canadian GP.
The attitude of Aston Martin It is not extraordinarily different from others in the Formula 1. There are teams, how does McLaren -the reference in terms of evolutions on the grid-, who prefer their package of improvements to be total and capable of touching all the important points. Other teams, such as Red Bull or Ferrari, are more prone to slight adjustments even though they always have a great package. At Aston, they simply have different times. “Miami was positive, but it is clear that we still have a lot to do to improve our pace and realize the potential of this package,” said Mike Krack, its chief on-track engineer.
Miami was positive, but it is clear that we have a lot to do to improve our pace and realize the potential of this package
The ADUO and Newey
Plus some weapons in his favor. The most real is the update of the ADUO that they will enter after the measurements of Miami. Being more than 10% of the performance of the reference power unit, Sling You could have 230 more hours of work on your test bench, $11 million more in budget, and the ability to borrow $8 more.
And the figure of a Adrian Newey which is now in the shadows. Hasn’t returned to a race since Australia and historically he has been defined as an engineer capable of changing bad cars. With a long-term plan, you can further explore a regulation that is still in its infancy and will experience changes. Those of Aston are slower, that’s for sure. But they will end up arriving in one of the ways.