Aston Martin had a difficult qualifying session for the Formula 1 Japanese GP, with both its drivers eliminated in Q1 and occupying the last positions on the starting grid in Suzuka. Fernando Alonso finished only in P21, while Lance Stroll was in P22, highlighting the team’s current limitations.
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The result reinforces the complicated moment experienced by the British team, which recognizes it is below the expected performance. Despite this, the focus now shifts to at least completing the race and continuing to collect data to better understand the car’s behavior.
Alonso highlighted that the Japanese circuit clearly exposed the car’s difficulties: “A difficult qualifying session for us here today in Suzuka. This circuit exposes our current limitations and that was clear on the track,” said the Spaniard. Even with the early elimination, the two-time champion highlighted the importance of the work carried out throughout the sessions.
“Even going out in Q1, we managed to accumulate mileage throughout the free practice sessions, which is important for collecting data and better understanding the car. I always enjoy driving here, so tomorrow we will try to maximize everything and see what is possible,” added Alonso, demonstrating moderate optimism for the race.
On the other side of the garage, Stroll explained that he faced technical problems in the final attempt in Q1: “I had some energy management issues on the last lap of Q1 and lost a few tenths there, so I will start from the back of the grid tomorrow,” said the Canadian. He also made it clear that the priority will be reliability.
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“The goal for the race is to see the checkered flag and cross the finish line, so our focus remains on reliability until we resolve our current problems. We have a good idea of the areas we need to work on in the coming months and we know it won’t be an immediate solution,” said Stroll.
Mike Krack, team principal, recognized that the weekend was already expected to be challenging in Japan: “We know our performance is not where it should be and this was always going to be a difficult weekend,” he said.
Still, he highlighted the drivers’ commitment and small improvements achieved: “Lance and Fernando pushed hard in the qualifying session, completing three laps each in Q1. Although we didn’t advance to Q2, we made incremental improvements and are in a better situation compared to Friday,” he added.
With this, Aston Martin enters Sunday’s race with modest expectations, prioritizing completing the race and consolidating the car’s reliability: “The focus now is on completing the race distance and continuing to build on the reliability we showed before the race,” Krack concluded.
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