Fernando Alonso praised the recent development work on his Aston Martin, describing the car’s behaviour as "much better" after the team introduced a substantial upgrade package during the Friday practice session for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The British‑Spanish champion highlighted that the car now feels more planted to the tarmac and easier to manage, especially when it comes to extracting grip through the corners.
While he acknowledged that the improvements are only a first step, the feedback marks a notable shift from the frustration that has plagued the outfit this season. Aston Martin entered the 2024 campaign with high hopes, hoping the new set of technical regulations – which came into effect at the start of the year – would provide a springboard to challenge the sport’s traditional "big four" manufacturers and contend for championship honours. Instead, the team has endured a difficult year, hampered by a Honda power unit that has struggled to deliver the expected performance and a chassis whose design, overseen by legendary designer Adrian Newey, has failed to meet the lofty benchmarks set for the car. Where many rivals have rolled out a series of incremental upgrades throughout the season, Aston Martin waited until the eleventh round in Budapest to unveil a single, comprehensive package comprising sixteen new components.
The timing was a gamble, but the results on Friday suggested that the gamble may be paying off. The day was not without its setbacks, however. Lance Stroll’s left‑rear suspension failed during the opening practice session, forcing him to miss the second session entirely.
Alonso, by contrast, completed a relatively smooth day, allowing him to assess the new parts under realistic track conditions. "It was much better," Alonso said after his laps. "The car felt more glued to the ground and easier to drive, to an extent, when you are in control of the grip in the corners. A more predictable and easier car, but still a long way to go for us.
Obviously, this is only the first step." The chassis upgrade arrives just ahead of Honda’s anticipated delivery of a major power‑unit update, scheduled for the Dutch Grand Prix after the summer break. Alonso stressed that progress must be made on both fronts: the aerodynamic and mechanical package as well as the engine.
He added that the upcoming race at Zandvoort will serve as a valuable test of the new Honda unit. "We need to find more performance both on the chassis, not only but also on the engine. Zandvoort will be a good test for us with the new engine.
Step by step, but definitely in the direction," he explained. "It looks better, for sure, and it’s more or less what we expected.
This is the most encouraging thing, that what we thought the new package would do the car actually translated into reality on track. That kind of correlation is what we need also for next year's project, so I think there is a positive atmosphere in the team now." Alonso’s 19th‑place time in the second practice session may have seemed modest, especially as he finished between the two 2026 newcomers from Cadillac. However, his lap was compromised by a track‑limits violation, and the session was further disrupted by a red flag caused by Alpine’s Franco Colapinto crashing. These factors gave Alonso hope that a cleaner run could yield a stronger performance on Saturday.
"It was tricky with the red flag and some of the traffic to maximise the lap," he said. "So, maybe there is a little bit more to come from our side, but maybe it’s the same for everybody, so let’s see tomorrow.
We concentrated on testing the new parts and trying to understand the setup direction, which maybe can be very different to what we’ve run at the last few events, so I think there is more potential to unlock hopefully tonight and into tomorrow’s qualy." Newey, who joined Aston Martin from Red Bull in March 2025 and is widely regarded as the most decorated designer in Formula 1 history, outlined a realistic short‑term objective for the team: achieving "respectability" on the scoreboard. Speaking at a press conference between the two Friday sessions, he admitted that the opening races had been "a complete nightmare" but expressed optimism that the team could at least secure a point and begin to rebuild its reputation. "Hopefully, we can get at least a point and respectability now.
I think that is the immediate goal. From there, we can try to keep moving forward," Newey said. The day’s drama continued when Stroll’s car suffered a sudden left‑rear failure in the latter stages of the opening practice, forcing him to spin and ultimately miss the second session. Newey clarified that the broken component was not part of the new package; rather, it was an older part that became problematic because it was now surrounded by newly introduced elements.
The surrounding changes altered the local geometry and made the failure unexpected. "The area involved was actually not changed," Newey explained. "We are short on spares because the cladding and so forth is different, so there are some minor changes in that area. In that sense, it’s very unexpected." Looking ahead, the weekend schedule includes an F3 sprint, a final practice session, an F2 sprint, and the qualifying session that will determine the grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The race itself is set for Sunday, with additional support events such as the Porsche Supercup and the F2 feature race. All sessions will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1, and viewers can stream the coverage via the NOW platform without a long‑term contract. In summary, while Aston Martin’s season has been riddled with setbacks, the recent upgrade appears to have injected a dose of optimism into the garage. Alonso’s feedback suggests that the car is finally beginning to behave as the engineers envisioned, and Newey’s measured target of "respectability" provides a clear, achievable benchmark for the next few races.
If the forthcoming engine upgrade from Honda delivers the promised power boost, and the team can iron out the remaining reliability issues, Aston Martin could gradually climb back into the competitive mix as the championship heads toward its second half.