Aston Martin F1 Falls Behind Top Teams

Flavio Briatore, advisor to Fernando Alonso, claims Aston Martin F1 is “moving backwards,” expressing doubts about the team’s performance at Imola.

Flavio Briatore, principal advisor to Fernando Alonso, asserts that the Aston Martin F1 team is “moving backwards.”

The two-time champion is experiencing a disastrous weekend at Imola, marked by a major crash during practice and a Q1 issue that leaves him at the very back of the grid.

“When I made my last attempt, the team called me and told me to stop because they saw something, which I still don’t know what it is,” Alonso revealed after qualifying. “They insisted that I come back in.”

The 42-year-old driver, who recently signed for 2025 and 2026, claims his weekend is now almost over.

“This is the second most difficult circuit for overtaking after Monaco. Even Singapore is less difficult. That’s why I don’t expect anything other than to finish the race, go home, and think about Monaco.”

Flavio Briatore, a long-time key advisor to Alonso, is at Imola this weekend.

“I see Fernando in good shape, but not really the car,” said the former Renault F1 boss.

“It seems the machine isn’t working well here. Instead of moving forward, it looks like they are going backwards.”

“From what I’ve seen so far, it seems they’ve fallen behind the top teams. Many improvements to the car, yes, but sometimes it’s better to have fewer overall improvements but smaller ones that work well.”