In 2025, Fernando Alonso is set to extend his partnership with Aston Martin.
Fernando Alonso has described the Emilia Romagna and Monaco grands prix as a “big wake-up call” for Aston Martin, admitting it will require “a few races” to reverse the team’s downward F1 2024 trend.
Alonso and Aston Martin were the surprise package of the F1 2023 season, registering six podium finishes in their first eight races together following the two-time World Champion’s arrival from Alpine.
Fernando Alonso: Imola, Monaco ‘a big wake-up call’ for Aston Martin
Additional reporting by Pablo Hidalgo
In the past 12 months, the team has been steadily losing ground to Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes. However, in recent weeks, their pace has drastically declined, with Alonso failing to qualify for Q1 at both Imola and Monte Carlo.
Despite bringing a significant upgrade package to Emilia Romagna, Aston Martin’s performance declined as Fernando Alonso, following a crash in the final practice, ended up being the slowest in qualifying.
Alonso, who just inked a fresh deal extending till at least the conclusion of F1 2026, openly acknowledged a rare admission during the Monaco weekend. He expressed to media outlets, including PlanetF1.com, that his performance on the track hasn’t been up to par since the Miami Grand Prix earlier this month.
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Alonso, in a conversation with DAZN F1 Spain following the Monaco race, recognized that the recent weeks have been a wake-up call for Aston Martin. However, he expressed confidence in the team’s ability to derive long-term advantages from this experience.
He stated that these weekends have been crucial for gaining insight into our weaknesses, understanding the car, and making improvements.
“You gain greater knowledge from challenges than triumphs, as problems surpass the height of euphoria.”
As we continue to gain knowledge, we eagerly anticipate what lies ahead for the remainder of this year, as well as the upcoming years of 2025 and 2026.
“The team has received a significant wake-up call from these two races, and it will prove highly beneficial for our progress.”
Alonso’s choice to begin the race on the hard tires was immediately disrupted as the first-lap crash involving Sergio Perez, Kevin Magnussen, and Nico Hulkenberg resulted in the deployment of the red flag in Monaco.
Due to the allowance of tyre changes during red flag stoppages, the 42-year-old was left with no choice but to nurse a set of medium tyres until the end of the race.
Alonso labeled the decision to begin on hards as potentially disastrous, yet he admitted that the team faced unfortunate timing with the red flag.
He elaborated, “We exhausted all our options in an attempt to secure some points. Knowing it would be a challenging task, we made the decision to bring Lance [Stroll] in for an additional pit stop, equipping him with fresh tires to challenge [Pierre] Gasly. Unfortunately, that plan didn’t materialize either. Once again, it seems like luck was not on our side throughout the weekend.”
“The car did not meet the standards required for scoring points.”
I am not implying that we let a valuable chance slip away, but when you opt for the harder tire and prolong its usage, only to encounter a red flag and be forced to switch to medium tires for the remainder of the race, it becomes exceedingly difficult as they must endure for 78 laps, almost akin to a suicidal move.
“That was my attempt, although they endured at a notably sluggish rate.”
“Unfortunately, bad luck struck when Lance found himself in P10 with just one point after the accident. However, all the cars were repositioned, and we were once again left out of the running.”
Today, a few individuals were exceptionally fortunate as they commenced on the mediums and had the good fortune to switch to the hard tires and complete the entire race. Nonetheless, we did not incur significant point losses today either.
After a spectacular beginning to the F1 2023 season, Alonso’s winning streak came to a halt in Canada. Despite securing second place behind Max Verstappen, he and Aston Martin faced a disappointing five races without reaching the podium.
Aston Martin is concerned about their performance in F1 2024, as they anticipate the need for a “major update” to the AMR24 car in order to regain their momentum.
He stated that during the previous season, we had a series of circuits that greatly suited our car. We achieved a second place finish in Monaco and Canada, demonstrating a remarkable pace.
“After our experiences in Imola and Monaco, where we lacked speed, we entered this year with a distinct sensation and certain uncertainties.”
“We must reverse this trend. Although it may take a few races before we can implement a substantial car update, we must exert maximum effort and strive to enhance our performance on the track in order to attain superior outcomes.”
We must remain united through both good and bad times, as they will inevitably come.
At a time when Aston Martin has been strongly linked with a move for Mattia Binotto, the former Ferrari team principal, Alonso’s comments emerge.
Last week, reports emerged in Italy stating that Binotto, who has been on a break from his active role in F1 since being replaced by Fred Vasseur at Ferrari in late 2022, had extensive discussions with team owner Lawrence Stroll at Imola. These discussions were geared towards the possibility of Binotto joining the Silverstone-based outfit.
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