Martin Brundle explains why ‘seriously unhappy’ Fernando Alonso must be so worried after the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso must be wondering if his Formula 1 career has been cursed since he won his second world championship.

It’s the 20th anniversary of Fernando Alonso’s first drivers’ championship victory when he ended Michael Schumacher’s reign of dominance while racing for Renault.

The 43-year-old repeated the feat in 2006, but since then, he’s moved up and down the paddock, and even taken a sabbatical, to try and find a way to win what appears to be a mythical third title.

Spells racing for McLaren, Renault again, Ferrari, McLaren again, two years in IndyCar, Alpine and now Aston Martin have all left the Spaniard frustrated.

He’s been narrowly denied by the likes of Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel in that time, but he’s a long way off the pace in 2025.

Alonso is one of four drivers yet to score a point in 2025, but came agonisingly close at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix to end that drought.

Not for the first time, Alonso is racing for a team concentrating on the future, but the two-time world champion will be well aware that he can’t wait forever to have a championship-challenging car.

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Martin Brundle spotted ‘seriously unhappy’ Fernando Alonso at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Alonso’s post-qualifying comments in Saudi Arabia were reminiscent of his time at Minardi, such was the lack of expectations he has at Aston Martin right now.

He qualified 13th, continuing his record of reaching Q2 at every Grand Prix this season without progressing to the top 10 shootout.

Writing in his column after the race in Jeddah, Martin Brundle was assessing the Spaniard’s performance on the incredibly quick street circuit and said: “Fernando Alonso was seriously unhappy post-race, saying it’s the worst he’d experienced in 25 years.

“He finished 11th after Liam Lawson was penalised 10 seconds for passing off track and not yielding the position, but remember that just two years ago in his Aston Martin he was the only driver who could keep Red Bull in sight, and they’ve lost serious relative pace meanwhile.”

Alonso and teammate Lance Stroll are facing a very different challenge to two seasons ago when podiums were a realistic goal heading into most races.

Now, a top 10 finish and scoring points is the objective, and despite Alonso’s best efforts, that’s still out of reach.

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Fernando Alonso laments ‘50 qualifying laps’ during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Alonso has enough experience during his time in Formula 1 to know whether Aston Martin are on the cusp of something special, or if they’re stuck in a loop of disappointing performances that will require more than the arrival of Adrian Newey to get out of.

Ever since Aston Martin were competing with Red Bull in 2023, virtually every update package they’ve delivered hasn’t had the desired effect.

It’s a problem that forced Lawrence Stroll to part ways with Dan Fallows, and install Andy Cowell as team principal to replace Mike Krack.

Speaking after the race in Saudi Arabia, Alonso said: “It was a very difficult race here in Jeddah and it was like 50 Qualifying laps for us, but sadly we come away from this weekend with no points.

“We tried to keep in the DRS of those in front of us and we capitalised on a few mistakes by others.

“We need to make improvements to the car, but we are all working hard to improve our situation. We won’t give up and we will keep on pushing with Miami up next.”

While Alonso suggests that Aston Martin ‘won’t give up’, it appears as though they’re going to start moving their focus away from this year’s car sooner rather than later.

If they’re not going to compete with the top four teams, or even with the strongest midfield outfits, they may as well start focusing on F1’s new regulations being introduced in 2026.