Fernando Alonso moves up from 18th on the grid to ninth place and secures two crucial points for Aston Martin with an unusual one-stop strategy
Fernando Alonso earned Aston Martin two crucial World Championship points at the Dutch Grand Prix with an extraordinary strategy. The Spaniard finished ninth at Zandvoort—even though he had started Sunday’s race from 18th on the grid.
However, the key to this result wasn’t just the pace of the Aston Martin. Rather, the team seized an unusual opportunity following Max Verstappen’s crash and turned it into a one-stop strategy that initially seemed hardly a realistic plan.
“That wasn’t the plan,” Alonso revealed after the race. Aston Martin had actually expected a two-stop, more conventional strategy. But the red flag following Verstappen’s crash changed the situation.
Aston Martin fitted Alonso with a fresh set of soft tires for the restart. The Spaniard then had to cover an enormous distance on them—and actually managed to make the tires last for 32 laps. While numerous competitors struggled with tire wear, Alonso kept the Aston Martin in the race and was later able to drive to the finish on the hard tires.
32 laps on softs: Aston Martin seizes the opportunity
The strategy was particularly clever because it allowed Aston Martin to circumvent the car’s actual weakness at Zandvoort. Alonso describes the problem quite clearly: His Aston Martin is now competitive in the corners, but it still lacks significant power on the straights.
“We’re faster in the corners and the cars in front of us are slower on the straights—and we get stuck behind them,” explains Alonso. As a result, Aston Martin can hardly capitalize on its strengths in traffic. “As soon as we have a clear run ahead of us, we try to take advantage of it—even if it’s not the optimal performance or the optimal strategy.”
That’s exactly what happened after the restart. With fresh soft tires, Alonso was initially able to take advantage of a clear run, while Aston Martin simultaneously focused on making the tires last as long as possible. Adrian Newey confirmed that the strategy was deliberately adjusted after the red flag.
“With good management, he was able to drive nearly half the race on those tires,” explains the Aston Martin team principal. This opened up the possibility for an effective one-stop strategy.
The midfield in the tire trap
Alonso’s advantage wasn’t necessarily that Aston Martin suddenly had an exceptionally fast car. Rather, the team managed to capitalize on its race situation better than its direct competitors, as other drivers were struggling on the track with tires that were losing grip.
Newey therefore described the approach as the “best chance” to still score points. It wasn’t until the final laps that Alonso came under pressure again from Pierre Gasly. But Aston Martin had enough pace to fend off the attack. “We had the pace to hold onto ninth place,” said Newey.
For Alonso, it is precisely this flexibility that is crucial right now. While the Aston Martin has improved significantly thanks to the latest updates, it still has clear weaknesses. “Sometimes we have to deviate a bit from what’s normal,” says the two-time world champion.
Aston Martin Is Making Progress—But Honda Remains a Problem
Alonso attributes the fact that the strategy worked at all to the progress Aston Martin has made with its new package. The team had already introduced new parts in Budapest. Additional components followed for Zandvoort. According to Alonso, Aston Martin brought a total of four or five new components to the track.
“I think we’re now optimizing the chassis side and can get the most out of it,” says Alonso. When it comes to the power unit, however, Alonso still sees a significant need to catch up, despite an update at Zandvoort. “We’re not yet where we want to be in terms of drivability,” he says.
Engine braking and gear shifts, in particular, are causing problems. “Engine braking seems to be a bit random from corner to corner.” Added to this is a classic problem: power on the straights. “We’re still losing a lot of time on the straights.”
This is particularly relevant for Aston Martin with an eye toward the upcoming races. After all, the more a track is characterized by long straights and high engine power, the more evident the weakness of the Honda powertrain becomes. Alonso is therefore already making a clear prediction for Monza: “I don’t expect us to be competitive there.”
Alonso: “I’m a very good driver”
That makes the two points from Zandvoort all the more valuable, as Alonso doesn’t view the result as a lucky fluke, as was the case with his first points finish in Monaco. “I think it was deserved,” he says.
The comparison with Monaco shows just how much Aston Martin is currently relying on such opportunities. In Monaco, Alonso scored one point even though nine cars had retired. At Zandvoort, he added two more points—in part because Verstappen retired.
But from Alonso’s perspective, ninth place was by no means solely the result of retirements. When asked how he managed to control the car under those conditions, the Spaniard replied dryly: “Very difficult.” When pressed on how he managed to do it, he said with a smile: “I’m a very good driver.”