Fernando Alonso believes that Monza has lost part of the characteristic that made it one of the most emblematic circuits in Formula 1. After reaching maximum speeds well below those recorded in other 2026 GPs, the Aston Martin driver even questioned the traditional nickname of “Temple of Speed.”
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The change is linked to the new power units of Formula 1. At Monza, the cars reached the maximum limit much earlier than in 2025. Alonso’s Aston Martin, for example, only reached 319 km/h, while Pierre Gasly reached just over 340 km/h with the Alpine on the lap that secured him pole position.
In previous years, exceeding 350 km/h at Monza was a recurring event. For Alonso, the contrast became even clearer when he compared the Italian circuit’s numbers with those of other rounds on this year’s calendar: “It was different from what we have experienced so far at Monza,” said the Spaniard. “We come here and it says we are entering the ‘Temple of Speed.’ But it is no longer the ‘Temple of Speed.’”
Alonso cited Barcelona and Budapest as examples of tracks where the 2026 cars reached higher speeds than at Monza. “In Barcelona, I think we hit 350 km/h or 360 km/h, and in Budapest, 355 km/h. And at Monza, we stayed around 312 km/h. So, it’s no longer the ‘Temple of Speed.’”
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The weekend, however, was even more complicated for Aston Martin because of retirements. The team’s two cars left the race with only three laps difference. Alonso was the first to stop, on lap 23, after suspecting he had damaged the car by going over the curb at turn 7: “Yes, I think I damaged the car,” he told F1TV. “I went over the curb at turn 7, and something felt strange — suspension or something like that.”
Lance Stroll managed to complete only three more laps before retiring just before turn 1. The Canadian’s hydraulic problem caused the virtual safety car and definitively ended Aston Martin’s weekend at Monza.
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