Alonso calls Aston Martin’s Sao Paulo showing ‘phenomenal’ after finishing 12th

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Fernando Alonso said Aston Martin’s car felt “phenomenal” after a strong recovery drive at the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Brazil in Sao Paulo. After Aston Martin had a difficult time in Mexico City, Alonso and the AMR26 bounced back in Brazil as Alonso finished 12th at Interlagos, narrowly missing a rare opportunity to score points.

Alonso’s weekend improvement was rooted in Saturday’s wet running. He qualified inside the top 10 for the first time all season, using experience in challenging conditions to set up a competitive starting position for the race. In the early phase of Sunday’s race, he was able to stay among the leading group in the first stint, helping maintain track position while the field sorted itself out.

Despite later dropping backwards, Alonso fought back through the traffic. The account of the drive highlights an on-track move in which the Aston Martin overtook Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari “on merit.” Even as positions shuffled, Alonso remained engaged with cars around him, including front-running contenders, rather than losing touch completely after the initial setback.

In describing the later stages, Alonso pointed specifically to the car’s ability to stay effective even on the final tyre phase. He said that during the last five laps on intermediate tyres (“inters”), he was still “in the mix” with both Mercedes cars, albeit one lap down. He added that, considering how much time Aston Martin loses on the straights, it suggested the gap over a single lap could have been roughly “one second” faster than the pace available on track—an observation he framed with tongue-in-cheek wording while reiterating that the car was “phenomenal.”

The performance also served as a response to Mexico City, where Aston Martin retired both cars early with power unit problems. At Interlagos, Alonso beat both Alpines, both Williams cars, and the two Haas drivers to the flag on merit, reinforcing the team’s pace improvement relative to parts of the season.

Aston Martin’s weekend did not mirror Alonso’s momentum on both sides of the garage. Lance Stroll did not finish the race, retiring again with an ERS issue. The retirement marked his eighth DNF in the last 10 Grands Prix, contrasting with Alonso’s ability to bring the car home and capitalize on the weekend’s improvements.

Chief Trackside Officer Mike Krack emphasized the mixed nature of the result when assessing the full Sao Paulo weekend. He described a “strong drive” from Alonso to P12, while noting Stroll’s battery-related retirement. Krack said the team must still be satisfied with the overall weekend because Aston Martin was ahead of some competitors with faster cars in both qualifying and the race.

Krack also pointed to the atmosphere at Interlagos, calling it an “iconic track” with a passionate crowd, and said it was “great to deliver a strong performance” in front of Brazilian fans. In the championship, Aston Martin remain 10th in the standings and are five points behind Williams, with Alonso’s last points contribution having come in Malaysia. The team’s pace trend in Sao Paulo suggests an upward direction, even as reliability continues to be a concern.

There was no mention of any future race date in the provided material.