Lance Stroll did not have a good day in Melbourne, but Fernando Alonso and Adrian Newey found some positive aspects despite being double digits behind in laps completed.
“Ideally, we’ll manage almost the entire race,” Fernando Alonso said hopefully into the microphones of the assembled media in Melbourne on Saturday. In the run-up to the 2026 Australian Grand Prix, there was talk of a “complete disaster” or a maximum of 25 laps.
On Sunday, the Spaniard didn’t even make it onto the asphalt at Albert Park. In the end, the 44-year-old only managed 21 laps, including a lengthy pit stop. But, and this is the “good news” that the team is clinging to: “Both cars were at the start,” Adrian Newey sums up the predicament.
According to the team boss, Aston Martin was at least able to gather “valuable insights into the AMR26 under competitive conditions.” “But when it became clear to us relatively quickly that we wouldn’t be able to fight for points anyway, we brought the cars into the pits to check them thoroughly,” Newey continued.
Vibrations “pure poison” for materials
Alonso highlights the positive aspects of the Australian weekend. “Today we were able to complete the formation lap, the start, and the pit stops with both cars. To outsiders, that sounds like absolute routine, but in Bahrain we weren’t even on the track at the times we were in testing.”
Lance Stroll was at least able to collect a little more data for Aston Martin. The Canadian managed to complete “a whole” 43 of 58 laps around the Melbourne circuit with several stop-and-go phases.
The vibrations in the Aston, which have been mentioned several times, did not bother him physically as much as they did the material itself. “Physically, I can handle it well, I can already drive the car at the limit. The problem is more that these constant vibrations are pure poison for the engine and the other components.”
Purposeful optimism or flight forward?
Nevertheless, Stroll did not want to consider the weekend a positive one. “We finished the race 15 laps behind.” The team “struggled with massive problems throughout the weekend.” “It was absolutely not a good day.” (To the race report)
However, the Canadian did find some small consolation: at least they were able to “do a few laps.” Team boss Newey sums up the predicament: “The data and lessons we gathered this weekend will help us immensely at the next Grand Prix.”
For Honda, it was at least “a step in the right direction.” Alonso, meanwhile, is resorting to pragmatic optimism, predicting that Aston Martin will definitely be better prepared for China after the unfortunate weekend in Australia. Things really couldn’t get any worse.