“Quicker than Ferrari” – Fernando Alonso secures Aston Martin’s top finish in F1 2026

The two-time world champion continued his upward trajectory after his second pit stop, overtaking Stroll, Esteban Ocon, and Arvid Lindblad to break into the top 10 on merit, though he remained 17 seconds behind eighth-placed Norris.

Mercedes inadvertently aided his ascent by having George Russell retire due to a technical failure and Lando Norris going off during the safety car phase, caught off guard by other cars slowing for the stranded Silver Arrow.

“We were even quicker than the Ferraris, I passed Hamilton and was pulling away from him, so at that moment I thought, ‘Alright, this is going well’,” Alonso shared with Sky Sports F1, reflecting on his move on the Briton on lap four, as both world champions struggled with slick tires.

“But clearly, we were quite slow on the slicks, and thanks to the safety car, everything bunched up and it felt like a fresh start from that point on.

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing

“I'm pleased for the team. There aren’t many weekends where we can score points, and on those weekends, we cannot afford any mistakes or miss opportunities. We executed well today, so I'm happy for the team and for the points.”

Alonso expressed to Spanish media that he anticipated even better results: “Honestly, I expected a bit more from our race pace.”

“We were doing fine, but I experienced a lot of oversteer. We made a minor adjustment to the front wing, but it didn’t really resolve the issue. So I’m content with the result, but we still have improvements to make.”

Alonso had to be clever to fend off a charging Norris in the final laps of the race.

“When you get into battles, as Lando did with Nico [Hulkenberg], I believe they drained their battery and then he spent two laps recharging it,” he clarified.

“I had a full battery for those two laps and utilized it on the straights. So I think these are circumstances that can either help or hinder you if you can interpret and manage them during the race.”

Meanwhile, Stroll crossed the line in 12th place, despite being in contention throughout the race for what could have been his first points finish of the year.

Alexander Albon, Williams, Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing

“We were in contention for the top 10, but during the last stint on hard tires, there was too much management involved,” he assessed. “I think the hard tire was quite robust; I could have pushed harder, but that would have cost me a few positions, finishing 12th instead of possibly earning points.”

The Canadian lost 14 seconds to Alonso over a 10-lap stretch in that stint – an average of 1.4 seconds per lap.

What contributed to the Aston Martin’s enhanced competitiveness compared to previous races? Its struggles at Monza and Baku were mainly attributed to the underperforming Honda power unit, and Alonso believes the performance at Sepang was specific to that track.

Thus, he is optimistic about another strong showing in Singapore, which “on paper” should be more favorable than Sepang, in the upcoming race.

“And then there are some weekends where we are significantly uncompetitive, and we have to accept that,” he conveyed to international media outlets.

Alonso has now accumulated the same number of points (seven) as Haas’ Ocon, Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg, and Williams’ Carlos Sainz, while outpacing the latter’s teammate – Albon currently has five.

Additional reporting by Jacobo Vega and Ronald Vording