Having stolen a top-ten finish last time out in Zandvoort, Aston Martin were hoping their B-spec car and Honda upgraded engine would prove decisive as the team look to turn around what has been a disastrous season.
At the Dutch Grand Prix, Alonso came home in ninth place to secure two points for the Silverstone team, but it was the Spaniard’s genius at making a de facto one-stop strategy work which made the difference.
The Cathedral of Speed vs. the Dunes
The roller coaster of a twisty circuit amongst the sand dunes in the Netherlands is a very different affair from the Cathedral of Speed in Monza. Here, the drivers are flat out for most of the lap, only braking around 12% of the time on the iconic circuit which hosts the Italian Grand Prix.
The low-drag configuration sees the power units pushed to their limit, and this was indeed the decider between those at the front and the midfield teams. With a speed of 338.1 km/h, George Russell clocked the quickest time through the speed trap. Having trimmed out their rear wing to traditional Monza levels of downforce, Alpine’s two drivers were the next two running their Mercedes powertrains.
At the other end of the pecking order were the Aston Martin pair, with Fernando Alonso clocking a mere 314.7 km/h and Lance Stroll 313.4 km/h. Even at the circuit where the power unit is exposed the most, a 25 km/h difference between Honda and Mercedes is truly shocking.
Qualifying Woes and Pit Lane Starts
Fernando Alonso completed just one push lap in qualifying before exiting at the end of Q1. The team then decided they needed to work on the car, and so the Spaniard will start from the pit lane. A joint statement was issued by the Aston Martin team and Honda this morning: “Yesterday in Q1 we identified some abnormal behaviour (in the data) on some of the PU components of Fernando’s car.”
“This prevented Fernando from completing a final run in qualifying. We worked on the car overnight as a result, and Fernando’s car will start the race from the pit lane.” Fernando was asked whether Monza was as tough a test of the new car and upgraded engine as expected. “Yeah, yeah absolutely. The more straights there are, the known tougher it’s going to be.”
He revealed the next worst circuit will most likely be in Las Vegas, with the long straight along the Strip. It was a problem with the Honda engine which meant Alonso could not do a second run in qualifying, yet given the speed deficits, little would have changed.
When asked whether it was frustrating that Honda’s upgraded engine was not delivering the performance gains required, Alonso said: “It’s as expected. We need to wait for better tracks.”
On the other side of the Aston Martin garage, an unfortunate record was set by Lance Stroll. He became the first-ever driver in F1 history to be knocked out of Q1 100 times. Fernando will be joined in the pit lane at the start by Liam Lawson, who was set to start at the back due to engine penalties.
Red Bull’s Parc Fermé Gamble
Having seen the performance of Alpine with the skinny rear wing, Red Bull decided to take the second RB22 out of Parc Fermé to change the setup of the rear wing. The FIA delegate’s report today states: “The rear wing assembly of car number 30 was replaced without the approval of the technical delegate. Also, changes have been made to the setup of the suspension of car 30.”
Pirelli’s Strategic Forecast
It could be that tyre degradation is the key factor in deciding whether Pierre Gasly can retain his lead from the start of the Grand Prix, and Pirelli are predicting the race will be a one-stopper. Speaking to assembled media after qualifying, Pirelli Motorsport director Dario Marrafuschi said he expected most drivers to select their C4 medium tyre for the opening stint of the Grand Prix.
Committing to the hard tyre would lock the race strategy in, but the medium offers the teams greater flexibility. “Our simulations indicate that a one-stop strategy will be the most competitive option at Monza, although several variations are very close in terms of overall race time,” said the Pirelli man.
“The Medium appears to offer the greatest flexibility, allowing teams to react to any neutralisations… On paper, the quickest strategy involves starting on the C4 and making a pit stop between laps 24 and 30 before running to the flag on the Hard.”
That said, some teams during qualifying were attempting to save a set of soft tyres for Sunday’s race for the scenario where a late safety car is deployed. A fresh set of the soft tyres could prove decisive for a last-gasp easy-pass over ten laps in Monza.
That said, it could be some drivers take a punt on starting on the red-walled C5 soft tyre, seeking an aggressive launch in an effort to gain positions on lap one. “The C5 has proved fully raceable and could represent an interesting option for those looking to exploit its higher level of initial grip to gain positions along the long straight leading into Turn 1,” added Marrafuschi.
“In this scenario, the optimal pit-stop window would be between laps 19 and 25, with the Hard compound taken through to the chequered flag.”
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The Judge, a nom de plume of an experienced F1 journalist and site founder with long-standing sources across the paddock. With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
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