Fernando Alonso believes Monza can no longer truly be called Formula 1’s “Temple of Speed”, arguing that the characteristics of the 2026 power units have fundamentally changed the experience of racing at the Italian circuit. After Aston Martin suffered another difficult qualifying session, the two-time world champion pointed to top speeds of around 312 km/h at Monza — considerably lower, he says, than figures seen at Barcelona and Budapest.
For Aston Martin, the difficult Saturday was hardly unexpected. Monza places enormous emphasis on power unit performance and straight-line efficiency, precisely the areas in which the AMR26 has struggled this season. Neither Fernando Alonso nor Lance Stroll managed to escape Q1, leaving both Silverstone-based cars near the rear of the grid.
Aston Martin falls to the back at Monza
Only grid penalties for other drivers changing power unit components will prevent the Aston Martins from occupying the final row for the Italian Grand Prix.
The result underlined the difficulties Aston Martin has faced with its Honda-powered package on circuits where straight-line performance is critical. Despite some recent signs of progress, Monza has once again exposed the weaknesses that remain in the car and power unit combination.
Alonso, however, used the weekend to make a broader point. Beyond Aston Martin’s own well-known problems, he once again criticised the new technical regulations introduced in Formula 1 for 2026.
Fernando Alonso says Monza has lost its “Temple of Speed” identity
The Spaniard has won twice at Monza during his Formula 1 career, first in 2007 and again in 2010. For Alonso, the current generation of cars is now eroding part of the character that traditionally made the circuit unique.
The nickname “Temple of Speed” has long been associated with Monza because of its extremely high average speeds and long full-throttle sections. Alonso believes that description makes much less sense under regulations featuring power units whose output is much more heavily divided between the internal combustion engine and electrical energy.
“Monza is no longer the Temple of Speed,” Alonso said while speaking to journalists at the circuit. “Today went exactly as I expected. It was different from what Monza has always been.”
The Aston Martin driver then highlighted what he considers one of the most striking consequences of the 2026 Formula 1 regulations.
“I think in Barcelona we reach 350 or 360 km/h, in Budapest 355 km/h. And I think here at Monza [the top speed] is now around 312 km/h.”
Why 2026 F1 energy management affects Monza
The issue is closely connected to the greater importance of electrical energy in the current power units. Monza features an unusually high proportion of long straights and comparatively fewer heavy braking zones in which significant energy can be recovered.
On more twisty circuits, where drivers repeatedly brake before accelerating onto one major straight, there are more opportunities to recharge the battery and then deploy that energy when maximum acceleration is required.
Monza presents the opposite challenge. Its long periods at full throttle put sustained pressure on electrical deployment, while the limited number of major braking events restricts opportunities to replenish the available energy.
The result is a very different type of performance profile from the one traditionally associated with Formula 1’s fastest circuit. Instead of Monza necessarily producing the highest peak speeds of the season, the energy demands of the 2026 cars can mean higher figures are reached at circuits that historically would not have been considered comparable in outright speed.
Alonso remains critical of Formula 1’s new regulations
For an old-school driver such as Fernando Alonso, that change is clearly difficult to embrace. His comments at Monza are another sign of his dissatisfaction with the direction taken by Formula 1’s latest technical rules.
Aston Martin’s own lack of straight-line performance inevitably makes the situation even more frustrating. Alonso and Stroll were eliminated in Q1, and the Italian circuit has exposed both the limitations of the AMR26 and the wider energy-management challenge created by the current generation of Formula 1 power units.
For Alonso, though, the issue goes beyond Aston Martin’s competitive position. Monza remains one of Formula 1’s most historic venues, but in his view, if a circuit famous above all for speed is producing lower top speeds than Barcelona or Budapest, the meaning of its famous nickname has inevitably changed.
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