Alonso Backs Honda as Aston Martin Confronts Vibration‑Hit 2026 Power Unit
He signals a slow, shared recovery effort across the Aston Martin–Honda project.
Overview
- Fernando Alonso publicly defended Honda’s troubled 2026 return, drawing on his past McLaren–Honda experience but striking a calmer, team‑first tone.
- He said Aston Martin will direct its own resources to Honda’s engine and hybrid system to fix violent vibrations, energy deployment problems, and related reliability faults.
- Team principal Adrian Newey warned the shaking risked permanent nerve damage for drivers, and short run limits led to countermeasures that enabled Alonso to finish the race in Japan.
- Alonso cautioned that solutions will not be immediate and framed recent laps as data‑gathering steps toward a longer‑term fix.
- He said he was unfairly singled out in 2015 despite Jenson Button and Stoffel Vandoorne sharing concerns, and he described a more cooperative culture at Honda now.