The 2026 Formula 1 season is turning into a nightmare for Fernando Alonso, but it could be radically different. Or at least that’s what a recent study by British experts at ‘The Race’ says. According to this report, Fernando Alonso would have taken pole position in Sepang and Singapore if not for his Honda engine.
The study shows how the chassis and Adrian Newey’s aerodynamic upgrades have been working to the point that in the last two races the Aston Martin has already been the fastest car through the corners. The problem stems from a power deficit so embarrassing in the Honda engine that ruins any strategy.
The Aston Martin has been the fastest car through the corners in the last two races
Only Honda separates Fernando Alonso from poles in Formula 1. That is the conclusion reached by The Race experts after a meticulous study in which they compared GPS data, telemetry and simulations. If it were only for the Aston Martin’s chassis, Alonso would have qualified on pole in Sepang and Singapore.
This study shows how Alonso has been the fastest driver through the corners in the last two races. A statistic that starkly contrasts with the facts: the Aston Martin driver finished eighth in Malaysia and out of the points in Singapore. But the sole culprit for such a gap between expectations and reality is the Honda engine.
The study concludes that Alonso was losing 2.2 seconds on the straights at Sepang compared to the fastest. But his final time was only two seconds exactly away from pole. In other words, Alonso would have been the fastest by just over a tenth if he had a power unit as competitive as the one that won, Max Verstappen.
In Singapore it was even more extreme. Alonso was 2.85 seconds off pole, but more strikingly, on the straights he was losing 3.22 seconds per lap. In other words, he would have secured a comfortable pole with more than three tenths of a second advantage if his Honda engine pushed as hard as Verstappen’s Red Bull. The worst part is that, in theory, Honda has already used two of its ADUO upgrades.
The Japanese marque introduced its first package of updates at Zandvoort, but secretly in Madrid they added a second upgrade. However, according to this study, they have a deficit of 113% relative to the chassis’s potential. In other words, Aston Martin would be winning, or contending for it, if not for its engine.
The AMR26 chassis also started off very poorly, but Adrian Newey has already fixed it. What remains is for Honda to step up its game so that Alonso can win again.
Images | Aston Martin
