There is no doubt that Aston Martin is pulling out all the stops to become one of the most important teams in Formula 1 for the coming seasons with the new regulations, with a high level of investment in the factory and hiring the most qualified personnel, and it only remains to be seen who will be the driver to lead the new project, without Fernando Alonso or Max Verstappen.
Rumors are growing about the arrival of Verstappen
At Aston Martin they continue to trust that Fernando Alonso is more than capable of leading the team’s new project in the new era of Formula 1 that begins next season. Despite his age, he will be 44 next season, they consider that he still has the talent and quality that make him one of the best drivers on the grid.
However, in such an ambitious project where money does not seem to be an obstacle for Lawrence Stroll, a piece as coveted as Max Verstappen to lead the project cannot be overlooked, and it could seriously jeopardize the continuity of Fernando Alonso.
The rumors about the arrival of the Dutchman to the British team are not new, and they are more than rumors. The driver himself has already acknowledged having been in contact with the teams and has also made it clear that the conditions that have been discussed “are a lot of money”. The driver has clauses to leave the Austrian team and it does not seem that they will be in a position to fight for championships in the next era given the decision they have made in the team to create their own power unit together with Ford, although nothing can be ruled out in this respect.
If Aston Martin and Verstappen join forces in 2026, everything indicates that Fernando Alonso would be left out of the project, as it seems almost impossible that they will let Lance Stroll out of the seat for obvious reasons. Alonso dreams of his third world championship before retirement and has the opportunity to fight for it if he manages to stay on for another year, but it will not be easy and the results of this season do not seem to be a factor.
Montoya, the last to speak
Juan Pablo Montoya, the former Colombian driver, is convinced that Max Verstappen will join Aston Martin, although he raises hopes for Fernando Alonso, as he believes that it will be in 2027, the second season of the new regulations, when the New Zealand driver will have a more realistic perspective of where he can win.
“I think Max will receive an offer he can’t refuse from Aston Martin. Max could give Red Bull a chance for a year and give Adrian a chance to start sorting out Aston. Adrian can’t do it immediately. It’s a new group and they all have to start working together. But if Red Bull has problems in the first year of the new regulations, I wouldn’t be surprised if Max has already signed with another team by the third race.”
With this assumption, Fernando Alonso would have the opportunity to race under the new regulations and then retire, even if the Spaniard didn’t like it, but he sees it as almost impossible that Lance would be the one to lose his seat.
“If Verstappen were to join Aston Martin, Fernando Alonso would retire and become a lifetime ambassador for the company. Fernando would be pissed to a degree, but it would be the right decision. If you take Lance out of the equation, then you lose Lawrence. And if you lose Lawrence, you lose everything. You lose Aston Martin, and then Max doesn’t come. If bringing Max in meant that Lawrence would have to sacrifice his son Lance, that would be the wrong choice for the team. If they forced Lawrence to do that. I think he would say, ‘Well, there you go, here you have it, let’s sell the team, I’m not interested anymore.
Of course Montoya’s words make a lot of sense, but the thing would be to see what Fernando Alonso is capable of if he is allowed to drive under the new regulations and they manage to make a winning car from the start. Fernando Alonso’s time in F1 is running out, but we would be wrong to doubt what he is capable of.