Fernando Alonso has demanded that Aston Martin “shake things up a little bit” to rediscover the competitive edge in Formula 1 prior to Adrian Newey’s arrival in 2025.
Aston Martin has endured a drastic decline since Alonso experienced a dream start to his spell with the team last season with six podiums in the opening eight races.
The Spaniard hasn’t visited the rostrum in 2024 as Aston Martin has encountered developmental setbacks which has seen it unable to maintain pace with the leaders.
Instead, the Silverstone-based squad has regressed towards the midfield group, resigning Alonso and team-mate Lance Stroll to fighting over the minor points places.
Alonso, who registered consecutive sixth places in Baku and Singapore before the autumn break, has admitted that Aston Martin is reliant on upgrades to the AMR24.
“Right now, I’m applying all the efforts to overcome a little bit the lack of pace,” Alonso told media including Motorsport Week in Singapore.
“A lot of work has been done and we have been increasing the work to find answers, more than ever now.
“So we are putting everything in, but we are finding that there are no miracles to be made here on track, and we need the help from the factory now in terms of development of the car.”
Alonso open on Aston’s 2025 hopes
Aston Martin attracted headlines over the gap between rounds as it announced that design legend Newey will become its Managing Technical Partner in March 2025.
Newey will oversee the team’s ever-growing technical division as the British marque angles to become a title-contending outfit upon a reset to the regulations in 2026.
But while a new wind tunnel and a works partnership with Honda will bolster those hopes, Alonso is adamant that Aston Martin can’t afford to give up on next season.
“I think 2026 is in our heads for everyone at Aston, and the biggest hope with Adrian coming, Enrico [Cardile] and some of the names,” he added.
“So this is going to be great, and the future looks bright, but 2025 – we need to shake things a little bit.
“I mean, it’s not good enough what we are doing right now in 2025, we need to change the pace.”
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