Fernando Alonso endured a frustrating season in Formula 1 as Aston Martin regressed after a promising start to the campaign.
The double-world champion started the season well, scoring points in all six of the opening rounds before a slump as the championship returned to Europe.
Alonso was very impressive over the Japanese Grand Prix weekend, particularly as the Aston Martin driver finished in sixth place in front of both Mercedes drivers.
The British team never returned to their strong form of the opening few rounds and were battling on the fringes of the points throughout much of the season.
| Position | Drivers’ Championship | Points |
| 1 |
Max Verstappen |
437 |
| 2 |
Lando Norris |
374 |
| 3 |
Charles Leclerc |
356 |
| 4 |
Oscar Piastri |
292 |
| 5 |
Carlos Sainz Jr |
290 |
| 6 |
George Russell |
245 |
| 7 |
Lewis Hamilton |
223 |
| 8 |
Sergio Perez |
152 |
| 9 |
Fernando Alonso |
70 |
| 10 |
Pierre Gasly |
42 |
There were frustrations for the Silverstone-based team, but Alonso can’t call 2024 a bad season as Aston Martin continues to build the factory and anticipates Adrian Newey starting work.
There may be signs of optimism among Alonso and his teammate Lance Stroll; the two-time world champion may enjoy a tweak Mercedes are making to their car.
Fernando Alonso may enjoy Mercedes changing the rear axle for 2025
Mercedes had a very inconsistent season from a purple patch just before the summer break with three wins in four races to just two events with a podium finish in the second part of the year.
They were very competitive in cold conditions as Lewis Hamilton led the Sprint in China, and the team scored a one-two finish at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The rear of the Mercedes was very unpredictable at times, and Hamilton was caught out in Las Vegas when he made a vital error in qualifying.
The rear axle on the Mercedes also impacts Aston Martin as they use the same engine and gearbox as a customer team.
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If Mercedes can improve in this area it should help Aston Martin, and Jesus Munoz explained on SoyMotor that it will come with a minimal amount of effort.
He said: “One of Mercedes’ problems is precisely the rear axle; hence, they will change it for next year. Now comes the part that Fernando Alonso, Mike Krack and Enrico Cardile will like and that, obviously, all this work by Mercedes will impact Aston Martin.
“If Mercedes’ problem were in any other area of the car, it would have nothing to do with Aston Martin, but since Mercedes’s problem is in the rear axle, we already know that Aston Martin buy the rear axle from Mercedes.
“The Silverstone team is going to benefit from Mercedes’s improvement. It will be a free improvement, so to speak, and it is not free because with the money its impossible to say it’s free because they are going to pay, but it’s free in terms of effort because Aston Martin is going to pay for the rear axle and with zero effort it should benefit from that improvement.”
Aston Martin should take a step forward with Adrian Newey joining the team
Aston Martin announced the signing of designer Newey earlier this year ahead of him starting work in 2025 in anticipation of the following season.
He has won championships throughout his career, including his most recent success with Max Verstappen at Red Bull in the current ground effect era.
Alonso is delighted to welcome Newey to Aston Martin, with the pair having never worked together before despite spending so much time in the sport.
The designer Newey should help lead Aston Martin forward with all his experience of ground-effect cars and a top driver such as Alonso to maximise the car.
