Fernando Alonso: Aston Martin AMR26 still holds ‘huge potential’

Fernando Alonso reiterated there is “huge potential” within the Aston Martin AMR26, and revealed staff at Aston Martin are helping Honda to resolve its issues.

Running has been restricted for Aston Martin for much of the weekend, as a result of a lack of spare batteries, and a vibration issue which has hindered the drivers’ ability to complete consecutive long runs.

Fernando Alonso: Aston Martin AMR26 still has ‘huge potential’

Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust.

It was a frustrating Saturday for Lance Stroll, who was unable to take part in both FP3 and qualifying, while Alonso qualified 17th for Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix.

While the wider picture is still difficult for the team at this moment in time, Alonso spoke of the morale boost being out on track and fighting other cars will likely have given the team.

“I don’t think it does change anything, but it made us change a little bit on the garage,” he explained to PlanetF1.com and others after the session.

More from qualifying at the Australian Grand Prix

F1 starting grid: What is the grid order for the 2026 Australian Grand Prix?

Max Verstappen Melbourne crash explained as Red Bull driver blasts ‘not correct’ F1 regulations

“The mechanics, they’ve been working flat out and changing power units day and night [in] the last six weeks. So even on the other side of the garage, with Lance being so unlucky in FP3 and quali with zero laps, when you go on track and you are in the mix with a few cars, it’s a little bit better than being dead last, as we were yesterday.

“So, maybe that’s enough to ignite a little bit of motivation in everyone in the garage, and that’s probably part of our job now as the drivers, to keep the morale of the team high in difficult moments.

“There is, for sure, huge potential on the car. We just need more laps, we just need more consistency, and it seems very fragile at the moment, as car 18 [Stroll] shows, that is depending on the day.”

While work is ongoing to look to fix the team’s power unit with Honda, Alonso revealed that Aston Martin staff are being allocated to its works power unit manufacturer to try and iron out its issues a quickly as possible.

He acknowledged that peak power is not currently what its rivals generate, but emphasised that both are working together for a solution.

“The power unit is what it is,” he added.

“We know that we are down on power. There is a deficit on power, and that will be more difficult to resolve, but we try to help Honda in that regard, I think a lot of resources from Aston Martin as well are switching to Honda to improve the situation and to help them.

“We are one team. We help each other, and we try to face this challenge all together and find the solutions in the short term.”

Additional reporting by Mat Coch

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.

You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!

Read next: Adrian Newey claims AMR26 is ‘fifth-best’ chassis despite Melbourne woes