Aston Martin finished a comfortable fifth in last year’s constructors’ championship. It was clear from the early part of the season that they were locked into the mid-table berth.
Aston showed signs of contending with the top teams early on as Fernando Alonso finished in the top six in three of the first four races. But they couldn’t keep up in the development race.
By the end of the year, they had become a lower-midfield outfit. But the points they collected early on were more than enough to see off any threat behind.
They finished the year on 94, 29 ahead of Alpine in sixth. However, there are signs that they could drop as low as ninth in this year’s pecking order, only ahead of Sauber.
Their fastest lap of testing was a 1:30.229, which put them eighth, in between Alpine and Racing Bulls. But Williams’ position at the top of that leaderboard confirms that it doesn’t paint a full picture.
Aston’s lap count was 306, second from bottom. It was a disrupted final day as Lance Stroll missed the morning through illness and then made a brief return in the afternoon before handing back over to Alonso.
Ted Kravitz shares his encounter with Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll at F1 testing
Ivan Capelli says Aston Martin ‘disappointed’ him the most in testing. He fears that they could be in ‘quite some trouble’ at the Australian Grand Prix.
According to ESPN, the feeling in the paddock is that Aston Martin have ‘dropped like a stone’. This was reflected in the mood of team owner Lawrence Stroll.
Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz encountered Stroll in the paddock and made an optimistic comment about the AMR25. Kravitz indicated that the Canadian shook his head in response.
The billionaire isn’t known for his patience. Stroll got ‘pretty loud’ with Aston Martin staff after last year’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, where an upgrade package failed to deliver.
“I was going to give them the benefit of the doubt until I spoke to Lawrence Stroll, who was leaving,” Kravitz said. “When I got to the point of the car, I said ‘oh the car looks better’ [shakes head]. They have dropped back.”
Adrian Newey asked Lawrence Stroll for one strange thing before starting work at Aston Martin
Aston Martin are pinning their hopes on 2026. They will have an exclusive Honda engine deal next year, and their team principal Andy Cowell oversaw the power unit division that was backbone of Mercedes’ dominance from 2014 to 2020.
The gap to the top teams is too big to bridge until the rules change. But Aston have the resources and personnel they need to capitalise on the upcoming overhaul.
Most notably, Adrian Newey has joined from Red Bull. Newey will start work on Monday, so it’s unclear whether he have any meaningful influence over the 2025 car.
According to David Croft, Newey has asked for a bed in his office. That’s a strange request, but one that shows his commitment to winning with the Silverstone-based team.
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