Alonso faces an ordeal and speaks out: Aston Martin’s struggles in 2024 during a season of high hopes that have been derailed – Fernando Alonso’s return to competitive form with Aston Martin for the 2023 season excited fans and led many to believe in the team’s potential. Alonso, a veteran Formula One driver and two-time World Champion, was frequently on the podium, demonstrating his skill and Aston Martin’s progress.
However, the 2024 season has been a challenging and humbling experience. The driver and his team have struggled to replicate their previous success, with Alonso’s best finish being fifth in Saudi Arabia. This downturn is the result of a number of complex factors that have left Aston Martin and its drivers fighting an uphill battle on almost every race weekend.
The struggles culminated in the Brazilian Grand Prix, where Alonso’s ordeal unfolded in harsh weather conditions and he finished a disappointing 14th. For a driver of Alonso’s stature and expectations, the season has been disappointing, and he and team principal Mike Krack have sought to analyse the factors holding them back.
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Brazil GP: A weekend to forget for Alonso & Aston Martin
The Brazilian Grand Prix should have been a chance for Alonso and Aston Martin to regain some momentum, but instead it was a weekend of frustration.
The challenges began in qualifying, where both Alonso and team-mate Lance Stroll were involved in incidents that required unexpected changes to their cars. These last-minute changes put both drivers at a disadvantage, particularly given the restrictions of the Sprint event regulations.
Team Principal Mike Krack explained: “Both drivers were battling with an incredibly difficult car to drive in Sunday’s race.”
Krack was quick to point out that the car’s handling problems in Brazil were not isolated to race day. Following the team’s analysis after the weekend, it was clear that several factors were at play. The sudden need to replace parts, the extreme weather conditions and the nature of the track itself all contributed to the weekend’s disappointing performance.
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Understanding the impact of the sprint regulations on Aston Martin
The Formula One Sprint Weekend Regulations allow teams to declare any parts shortages or required replacements to the FIA in advance. However, teams are restricted from making any changes to the car’s mechanical set-up after these declarations have been made.
This rule is intended to maintain fairness and ensure that teams are not given extra set-up options during a compressed schedule. For Aston Martin, this rule proved to be a major obstacle in Brazil.
Krack explained that the restrictions imposed by this rule prevented Aston Martin from adjusting the set-up of their cars to meet the specific challenges of the Brazilian track and conditions. The spare parts fitted after the qualifying incidents were different to those originally intended for the race. As a result, the cars’ aerodynamic balance and performance were compromised.
“We were not able to check or adjust the set-up of the cars, which had a negative impact on the aerodynamic behaviour and performance,” said Krack.
These limitations, combined with the difficult weather and track conditions, put Alonso and Stroll in a very unfavourable position. Unable to adapt to their modified set-ups, the drivers faced a race marred by frequent wheel locking and a noticeable lack of control.
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Battling adverse conditions
Alonso’s experience in Brazil was in stark contrast to his previous success with Aston Martin. He found himself battling not only with his rivals, but also with the handling of his own car.
The bumpy terrain and wet conditions of the São Paulo circuit added to an already challenging set-up. Krack observed that both drivers, particularly Alonso, struggled to maintain control in these conditions, resulting in frustratingly poor lap times and several close calls.
“Both cars were particularly prone to wheel locking and the data shows that this was the cause of Lance and Fernando’s problems,” reported Krack. The wheel locking problems were a direct result of the compromised set-up of the car, which was not properly adapted to the rough surface of the track or the wet conditions.
For Alonso, the Brazilian Grand Prix epitomised the frustrations and limitations that have plagued Aston Martin’s season.
Comparing 2023 and 2024: An off year for Aston Martin
The 2023 season saw Aston Martin break into the upper echelons of F1, securing podium finishes and demonstrating a marked improvement in performance.
For Alonso, a seasoned veteran with a legacy in the sport, it was an exciting return to form. The transition from a podium team to one fighting for points has been jarring for fans and the team alike.
Krack’s analysis suggests that while some of the team’s problems are circumstantial, such as the unexpected need for parts replacements, there may also be deeper, structural challenges at play. The team’s struggles are not unique to F1, as the sport often requires teams to respond quickly to unforeseen technical and logistical hurdles. However, Aston Martin’s persistent difficulties point to possible deficiencies in development, strategy or both.
The failure to adapt effectively to the sprint regulations in Brazil is one such example of small missteps compounding into major obstacles.
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Alonso’s breaks silence: Reflecting on a difficult Brazil race
For much of the season, Alonso has remained relatively quiet about Aston Martin’s downturn in fortunes. The typically outspoken driver has refrained from publicly criticising the team, suggesting a level of loyalty and optimism in Aston Martin’s potential.
However, his experience in Brazil and the relentless nature of the struggles has led him to acknowledge the difficulties.
“After [qualifying] we had to go back to a less performing package on the car, so the race was a little bit slower pace from our side,” Alonso told media at Interlagos.
“And then we had a brake issue, I think Lance had the brake problem in the formation lap, and I had the brake issue after all the restarts where all the brake balance goes completely rearwards, it’s like braking with a handbrake, so it was all in all a nightmare out there, but we need to get better for the next round.”
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Alonso remains optimistic as Aston Martin struggles
Reflecting on his difficult season, Alonso expressed a mixture of frustration and determination. For Alonso, the team’s progress in 2023 was a beacon of hope for the future.
The harsh reality of 2024, however, has been sobering. Despite this, Alonso remains committed to working with the team to address their issues and restore Aston Martin’s competitive edge.
Despite sitting in fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship, Aston Martin is facing significant challenges on the track as it searches for performance solutions. A recent attempt to introduce a versatile floor design at the United States Grand Prix failed to produce the desired results, leaving the team to continue to alternate between a floor spec suitable for low speed circuits and one optimised for high speed circuits.
Aston Martin performance director Tom McCullough told Autosport: “We’ve had two main floor philosophies this year and we’ve iterated and developed both of them as they suit different tracks and, as you can see, we’ve sort of gone back and forth between the two. The floor we brought to Austin was really trying to do the best of both worlds and was a bit of an experimental ground understanding for next year.”
However, Alonso is positive about the team’s experimental approach and remains hopeful that these trials will pay dividends in 2025.
“Every weekend we take positives and lessons, so we have to apply those lessons,” Alonso said. “I think this weekend again we tried different packages, I think again it’s very clear which ones work and which ones don’t, so hopefully all this information will help the team for 2025.”
McCullough was also optimistic about Aston Martin’s direction for next season, noting, “I think if you look at the way the AMR25 developments are going at the moment, which is really an evolution of the philosophies that we’ve adopted, we’re making quite good progress in the wind tunnel.”
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Looking forward: What Aston Martin needs to compete again
As the 2024 season draws to a close, Aston Martin faces tough questions about how to regain the form it showed last year. While every Formula One season has its own unique challenges, a team with Aston Martin’s ambitions must undergo a thorough assessment of its technical and strategic operations.
From addressing potential weaknesses in car design to ensuring the team is well prepared for the various regulatory nuances of sprint events, Krack and his team have a challenging road ahead.
Aston Martin’s problems in Brazil highlighted the importance of adaptability in Formula One. As other teams have refined their set-ups and strategies to deal with regulatory constraints and weather-related challenges, Aston Martin will need to do the same if they are to return to podium contention in the future.
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