Alonso faces a back-of-grid start after a power unit change, while Stroll finishes 19th in another difficult qualifying session.
Aston Martin endured another disappointing day at the Singapore Grand Prix, with both drivers eliminated in Q1 and Fernando Alonso set to start Sunday’s race from the back of the grid following a planned power unit replacement.
The British team struggled for competitiveness throughout Saturday’s running at Marina Bay. Alonso qualified 17th, while teammate Lance Stroll could manage only 19th after encountering traffic during his final qualifying attempt.
With the AMR26 unable to deliver the performance required to challenge for Q2, Aston Martin opted to replace Alonso’s power unit overnight, accepting the resulting grid penalty.
Alonso admits Aston Martin lacks the pace
Alonso had earlier secured 11th place in the Sprint, benefiting from several retirements ahead of him. However, the two-time world champion acknowledged that the result owed more to circumstances than outright performance.
« Today in the Sprint, we extracted the maximum from the car and took advantage of other drivers retiring to finish 11th, » Alonso explained.
« Unfortunately, qualifying was similar to yesterday’s Sprint Qualifying, and we could only manage 17th. »
Despite completing a clean final lap and praising his team’s execution, Alonso admitted the car simply lacked the speed needed to progress.
« My final lap was clean and everything was well managed by the team, but once again, the pace just wasn’t there. »
As a result, Aston Martin decided to make a strategic power unit change ahead of Sunday’s Grand Prix.
« Consequently, we have decided to change the power unit overnight. »
The decision will see Alonso start from the back of the grid, behind George Russell, who is also carrying a penalty but qualified ahead of the Spaniard.
Stroll frustrated by traffic and difficult handling
Lance Stroll’s Singapore weekend has proved equally challenging.
The Canadian retired from the Sprint following contact with Cadillac’s Sergio Pérez and subsequently failed to progress beyond Q1 in Grand Prix qualifying.
Stroll finished 19th, with the bumpy characteristics of the Marina Bay circuit exposing the limitations of Aston Martin’s AMR26.
« It hasn’t been our weekend so far. We’re not where we expected to be here, » Stroll admitted.
« The car didn’t feel good today. It’s a bumpy circuit, and this type of track is difficult for our car. »
The Canadian also revealed that traffic compromised his final qualifying attempt, pointing to an incident involving Valtteri Bottas.
« We couldn’t take advantage of the opportunities in the Sprint because I had to retire quite early following contact with another car. »
« In qualifying, we encountered traffic on my final flying lap, and there was some confusion with Bottas, who was ahead of me and aborted his flying lap, which cost us a lot of time. »
Aston Martin faces a difficult recovery on Sunday
With both drivers struggling for pace and Alonso facing a grid penalty, Aston Martin heads into Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix with limited expectations.
The team’s difficulties on Marina Bay’s demanding street circuit have highlighted the AMR26’s weaknesses, leaving Alonso and Stroll facing a challenging task if they are to fight their way into the points.
