Alonso calls for more work after Honda Spec 2 driveability troubles at Zandvoort

Aston Martin’s Honda upgrade hits trouble

Fernando Alonso says Aston Martin and Honda need more work to optimise the Japanese manufacturer’s more powerful Spec 2 V6 power unit after both drivers struggled with its behaviour during sprint qualifying at Zandvoort.

The result was a major setback for Aston Martin. Alonso went off at Turn 1 in SQ1 after reporting heavy engine vibrations and qualified 22nd and last, three seconds off the pace. Stroll finished 19th, ahead of both Cadillac cars but still well away from the midfield.

‘Difficult to stop the car’

Alonso said the engine’s behaviour was most problematic under braking, where the power delivery made the car difficult to control.

“Free practice was more or less okay but in qualifying we had problems on the engine,” Alonso reported. “Driveability was pushing on the braking, so it was difficult to stop the car sometimes because the engine was over-delivering.”

He also said the SLM mode, the lower-drag setting on the 2026 car, did not work for him, preventing him from opening the rear wing. The combination of the engine’s power delivery and the rear-wing issue made qualifying laps especially difficult.

“When you brake and the throttle is open, it’s difficult to stop the car,” Alonso added.

Stroll described a similar experience, pointing to driveability and other unresolved issues. “We were struggling with the driveability, and there were a few other things that weren’t quite right, so we need to understand why,” he said.

The team planned to review the data overnight before the sprint. The wider Honda Spec 2 power-unit changes had been presented as a source of renewed hope, but Friday showed that extracting its performance would require further calibration.

Honda’s optimisation work restarts

Honda F1 project leader Shintaro Orihara had already warned that the upgrade would force the manufacturer to revisit much of its driveability work. The new combustion characteristics, he explained, would change engine behaviour through corners and require the optimisation process to begin again.

For Aston Martin, the immediate priority is therefore not simply unlocking extra power. It is making that power predictable enough for the drivers to brake, rotate and accelerate with confidence.