Aston Martin is clinging to a straw, a straw that is burning so hot that even Fernando Alonso doesn’t seem to want to hold on to it. The British team’s poor start to the season seemed a foregone conclusion from the outset, but no one could have predicted such a disaster. So much so that, despite the possibility of updates for the next race, there is little confidence that they will make a significant leap forward on the current grid.
A disastrous start for Fernando Alonso
The poor start to the season has hit Fernando Alonso particularly hard. The Asturian driver has been involved in accidents and retirements in races where points were possible—thanks to his quality. This has allowed Stroll, who has shown that on equal terms he is a couple of steps below the Oviedo native, to score points in three different races. The best example of this came this weekend in Miami, where Alonso had the chance to finish on the podium – incredible as it may sound – in the race to the spint. The team’s poor decision not to pit on time relegated him to eighth place. At least he could have taken a point, which would have been better than nothing. But his accident with Lawson took him out of the race – something that once again favored Stroll in his quest for points.
The weekend couldn’t have ended worse for Aston Martin, with both cars out in Q1 and finishing last in the race, possibly the worst pace of the entire season. Far from improving, the team is taking steps backwards.
Changes in the Aston Martin structure
Lawrence Stroll has made a significant commitment to making Aston Martin a winning team. The investment has been very ambitious. The factory has been changed and equipped with the latest technology on the market. The best engineers in the world of F1 have been hired. Everything pointed to the team going upwards, and that seemed to be the case in 2023 when Fernando Alonso was back fighting for podiums. But everything fell apart to the point where we are now.
For 2025, Stroll has put the icing on a cake that is not yet well baked, with the addition of a new wind tunnel and the arrival of Adrian Newey, considered the best engineer in the history of the sport. The goal is 2026, but the changes should be seen in the next race.
Improvements to the AMR25
The new improvements are here, the first with the new wind tunnel, with Adrian Newey (supposedly 100% focused on 2026), and it’s the straw Aston Martin is grasping at. We warned about this a few weeks ago exclusively on Grada3, and now Alonso has confirmed it. But the truth is that every improvement the team has made to its various cars has been a step backwards in terms of performance. Fernando Alonso himself warned of this after the Miami race.
“We need to improve and hopefully take a step forward in Imola, where we hope to make progress with the new things we are bringing. But everyone is going to have them.”
“Of course new parts will arrive, but they will arrive for everyone. We talk about Aston’s as if the others were resting or sleeping. Whatever we take to Imola or the following races, everyone will have it.”
Given the results, it’s best not to raise false expectations. The AMR25 is a bad car, improvements may increase performance, but miracles in F1 don’t usually happen, almost never, but it’s the straw Aston Martin is clinging to, the one it has to cling to, to try to finish the season with dignity.