In Last Word On Sport’s series of 2024 F1 Reviews, we turn to Aston Martin who went from podium finishes in 2023 to scrapping for points this year.
Aston Martin: Too Many Upgrades With No Real Impact
A lot has changed in the world of Formula 1, from Red Bull‘s dominance to McLaren’s rise. And from Aston Martin celebrating podium finishes to struggling for points.
The last time Aston Martin celebrated a strong result was in Brazil last year. Interlagos remains the team’s most recent podium finish.
This season, Aston Martin collected 95 points and finished fifth in the standings. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll scored 70 and 24 points, respectively. The two are ranked 9th and 13th in the Drivers’ Championship.
The Design of the AMR24 Didn’t Pay Off
The team started the season full of excitement after a strong 2023 campaign. Races like Saudi Arabia seemed to confirm they were heading in the right direction, with Alonso finishing P5. However, the desired results were never achieved. The AMR24 proved too unstable, and the upgrades didn’t deliver the performance needed.
A prime example of this came at the 2024 Brazilian GP, just twelve months after their last podium. Both Alonso and Stroll struggled throughout the weekend due to severe bouncing. Alonso finished the race with back pain and brake issues. The only reason he continued was to honour the work of the mechanics.
All season long, Aston Martin worked to address the bouncing, introducing different floor specifications.
The first successful update came in Suzuka, likely their best upgrade of the season. This specific floor was also used in Brazil, Mexico, and Azerbaijan, all tracks with many low-speed corners.
In contrast, the floor introduced in Budapest made the car even more unstable, with extreme bouncing making it harder to drive.
Too Much Back and Forth
Aston Martin started the 2024 season hoping to impress the top teams. However, things quickly went south, and the team found themselves relegated to the lower-middle part of the grid.
The reason behind this setback lies in their constant and aggressive development. Too many upgrades, introduced one after the other, left little time to fully assess their impact.
When compared to McLaren, the new World Champions took a more measured approach, delaying the introduction of their third floor specification to better test their aerodynamic system.
In contrast, Aston Martin rushed through upgrades, which resulted in a lack of stability and consistency from one Grand Prix to the next.
This approach is somewhat unusual for F1 teams. Typically, teams test upgrades across different races to gauge their performance on various track types.
This strategy is also influenced by the high costs involved. For Aston Martin to introduce so many upgrades and go back and forth between them is not the usual practice in the sport.
READ MORE: McLaren’s 2024 F1 Season Review: Ending a Decades-Long Title Drought
Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll: Room for Improvement
Fernando Alonso – The Highlander of F1
At 43, Alonso continues to fight for the best results on track. Despite the challenges, Alonso managed to score 70 points this season, playing a key role in keeping Aston Martin as a fifth force in F1.
Alonso’s dedication to the sport was evident even when he faced health issues. After suffering a shoulder injury during the Brazilian Grand Prix, he then battled a throat infection in Mexico. His health struggles persisted into the final races of the season, including Las Vegas.
Celebrating his 400th Grand Prix this season, Alonso’s standout performance came in Japan.
In Suzuka, he qualified P5, just four-thousandths of a second behind Sainz’s Ferrari. Starting on the Softs, an aggressive choice, he was later penalized due to his crash between Daniel Ricciardo and Alexander Albon.
Despite this, he fought hard throughout the race to keep Oscar Piastri and the two Mercedes behind him. His sixth-place finish was nothing short of miraculous, especially when compared to the struggles of his teammate, Lance Stroll.
Looking back at the 2024 season, Alonso admitted that the year didn’t go as expected.
Nevertheless, the two-time World Champion renewed his contract with Aston Martin for several more years, hopeful that the team will learn from their Woking-based counterparts and work hard to return to their best form.
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Lance Stroll – More Effort Required
On the other side of the garage, Stroll only managed to score 24 points throughout the season.
While the car played a role, the contrast with Alonso’s performance is clear. The 26-year-old driver made several mistakes that overshadowed his results. This sparked a debate about whether it’s the right choice for Aston Martin to retain him.
Take the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, for example. Stroll crashed into the barriers during the formation lap. In attempting to get his car back on track, he ended up in the gravel, forcing the stewards to intervene while the rest of the grid completed another formation lap.
As mentioned earlier, the Brazilian Grand Prix was a tough one for the team, with the crash during qualifying, the Budapest floor, and the challenging track conditions. But this doesn’t excuse Stroll’s mistake.
Overall, his season was underwhelming, and the debate over his position in the team continues.
Looking at the Future
Aston Martin didn’t succeed in their plan to become one of the top teams this season. However, that doesn’t mean all the effort put in this year was in vain.
While the 2024 season ended on a bitter note for the British team, things may change in 2025 and 2026.
The team is investing in new talents, such as Adrian Newey, and in cutting-edge technologies like an upgraded wind tunnel and a new simulation system.
“I think the hard thing there is the point where Fernando will benefit from Adrian Newey’s involvement.
“If everything lines up well, Aston could be winning in ‘27 or ‘28, not before that. But by 2028, Fernando’s going to be 47/48. So, who’s going to be there? And by then, does Lance still want to race?
“It wouldn’t be the most surprising thing in the world if Max Verstappen joined Aston Martin, would it? Honda and Newey; they’d be pretty happy to have Max driving the car.” – F1 legend Juan Pablo Montoya speakaing to Instant Casino.
These investments could help propel Aston Martin forward in the upcoming seasons.
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