One of the most anticipated teams heading into the 2026 Formula 1 season is Aston Martin. The Silverstone-based outfit has been laying the foundations for next year for some time, assembling what could genuinely be described as a ‘dream team’ in terms of personnel. But before turning the page, it’s worth reviewing a 2025 season that, while arguably sacrificed with an eye on future development, proved to be inconsistent in both results and performance. Overall, the year was marked more by slow races than highlights, with Aston Martin narrowly missing out on sixth place in the Constructors’ Championship, a position claimed by domestic rivals Racing Bulls.
Aston Martin in numbers: contrasting trends between Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll
Looking at the statistics, Aston Martin finished the 2025 season seventh in the Constructors’ standings, just three points behind Racing Bulls. After the final race in Abu Dhabi, there was some disappointment, particularly from Fernando Alonso, who expressed frustration at what he was able to achieve behind the wheel of the AMR25. “It’s one of the worst results I’ve ever had in my career. Finishing tenth in the Drivers’ Championship is terrible for me,” Fernando Alonso said at the end of the season. He clarified, however, that he had no complaints about his own driving, with Alonso ranking first among midfield drivers behind only the top teams (excluding Yuki Tsunoda) and the two Williams drivers. Williams ultimately finished fifth in the Constructors’ Championship, 45 points ahead of sixth place. This suggests that Alonso probably extracted the maximum performance from his car, a fact further supported by the comparison with his teammate Lance Stroll.
Alonso struggles early, then dominates: a clear qualifying advantage
Alonso scored points in eleven race weekends for a total of 56 points, compared to seven scoring weekends and 33 points for Stroll. Both drivers, however, experienced periods of difficulty during the season. Alonso struggled to find his rhythm at the start of the year, only scoring his first points at the Spanish Grand Prix, the ninth round of the season. From that point on, the Oviedo driver capitalized on almost every race before the summer break, with the exception of the Belgian Grand Prix. This momentum continued into the final third of the season with additional points finishes. In contrast, Lance Stroll had a season with the opposite trend, scoring points in the first two races and intermittently in the first half of the year. His second half was much weaker, with a long dry spell beginning in Monza and ending only in Abu Dhabi, where he secured a single point.
When examining pure performance, Fernando Alonso held a dominant advantage in qualifying, winning the head-to-head 24-0 over Lance Stroll, with the Canadian averaging a gap of roughly three-tenths of a second per lap across the season, peaking at eight-tenths. The race comparisons were less severe but still notable: Alonso finished ahead 13 times, compared to Stroll’s four. In races, the Canadian managed to reduce his deficit slightly compared to qualifying, losing an average of two-tenths per lap over the course of the season.
AMR25 never the midfield benchmark, only isolated performance peaks
Shifting focus to the car, the AMR25 mirrored Aston Martin’s 2025 results: competitive flashes but no consistent progress. Within the midfield, Williams was dominant for much of the season, losing its benchmark role only between the Spanish and Italian rounds, when Racing Bulls outperformed the other midfield teams. This indicates that Aston Martin’s standout results came from isolated peaks rather than steady improvement. Averaging performance across the year, Aston Martin trailed Williams by over three and a half tenths, a deficit larger than that of Racing Bulls or Haas. Observing the teams between Williams (benchmark) and Aston Martin, the final third of the season was more encouraging, with only Haas interrupting the gap between the two. As noted, 2025 was marked by peaks rather than consistency, with Alonso’s fifth place at the Hungarian Grand Prix being the season highlight. That weekend also saw Alonso post the best qualifying result of the year with fifth on the grid. Additionally, he scored fourth in the Sprint Qualifying in Qatar.
The 2026 dream team: will Aston Martin rise to the top?
With the 2025 season behind them, Aston Martin is now looking to the future. The British team has been preparing for 2026 for years, building a state-of-the-art campus at Silverstone, heavily supported by Lawrence Stroll, and acquiring top-tier talent to create a genuine dream team. Stroll has never hidden his ambitions, noting in the past that his ventures have consistently produced results. Will this philosophy succeed in Formula 1? At the top of the Aston Martin pyramid now sits Adrian Newey, who is not only the chief architect of the 2026 project but was appointed Team Principal in November. While Adrian Newey has never held a managerial role in his extensive career, the move is seen as symbolic, giving him full control of the team’s technical direction.
Newey is just the tip of the iceberg. Lawrence Stroll has been working tirelessly behind the scenes, recruiting high-profile figures to join Aston Martin, including Enrico Cardile, who completed his gardening period after leaving Ferrari in 2025. However, challenges remain. A completely new structure, new partners, and a switch from Mercedes to Honda power units may require a period of adaptation. It remains to be seen whether Honda can immediately deliver the desired results or if they will need to bridge the gap to Aston Martin’s previous engine supplier. These are challenges shared by every team on the grid and will only be resolved as the 2026 season unfolds. In the meantime, Silverstone continues to work relentlessly, with Lawrence Stroll setting his sights on turning Aston Martin into a top team. The question remains: will they succeed?
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