Just after crossing the finish line in fifth place at Hungaroring, his best position of the year, Fernando Alonso sent a message to his engineers that sounded more like a plea: "Now we need four or five races like this." For the second time this season, thanks to the seventh place of the unpredictable Lance Stroll, Aston Martin scored points with both cars. A week after the debacle in Spa, the Silverstone team managed to lead the midfield, their minimum goal for 2025. The mechanics packed up, eager for vacation, in a climate of moderate enthusiasm, but Alonso was already thinking about the Dutch GP. On August 31, Aston Martin must confirm what was hinted at in Hungary.
"These two weeks have been a rollercoaster. In Spa, we started last, with our heads a bit down and worried for the rest of the year. Here, we left with the opposite feeling, with optimism," evaluated the Asturian yesterday. The disastrous qualifying session at the Belgian GP, with both cars filling the last row of the grid, hit rock bottom for Aston Martin, but in three days their engineers finally found the right formula. The aerodynamic adjustments, combined with the peculiarities of the Hungarian track, made the AMR25 a competitive car.
In fact, in terms of race pace, it was the fifth fastest car, with an average lap time of 1:22.128, just 63 milliseconds slower than Red Bull. Although this data is merely indicative, as strategy prevails over pure performance at Hungaroring, it does gauge the improvement. For obvious reasons, the step forward of the AMR25 on such a twisty track was related to aerodynamics.
Before starting the race, Alonso himself explained it in a pedagogical tone. "It's the first race where we used the front wing correctly, and that gives us that extra in the corners, so important here," he analyzed, listing each step of the last three months. In mid-May, at the Emilia Romagna GP, they introduced an aerodynamic package; six weeks later, during the British GP, the new floor arrived; after the trials of the Belgian GP, the front wing completed the circle. "The three upgrades meet our expectations. This is very encouraging for our 2026 project," he emphasized, referring to the car that Adrian Newey is already working on.
Yesterday, Alonso knew how to optimize resources, especially during his first stint. He completed 39 laps with the medium tire, holding his ground against Gabriel Bortoleto and Max Verstappen. When the Brazilian rookie, his protege at FA14 Management, tried to bother him in the final laps, the two-time champion responded fiercely, increasing the pace. The Sunday would be much more difficult for Mad Max, at the wheel of an RB25 lacking grip in the slow corners. The great tyrant of recent seasons finished 72 seconds behind Lando Norris. At least he managed to finish the race on the same lap as the winner. Lewis Hamilton couldn't say the same.
"It wasn't as easy as it seemed because we had to manage traffic, and Verstappen was lurking, but everyone was where they should be," assessed Mike Krack, Aston Martin's track operations director. With these 16 points, his team occupies sixth place in the World Championship, one point ahead of Sauber. An insufficient achievement, but it should serve as a springboard for the second half of the season. "We have to fight until the end. We don't settle, we don't give up. Today we showed that, so it's a good time to celebrate," concluded the Luxembourger.
Holding ground in the remaining 10 races is essential for Aston Martin. Not only for a matter of decorum but because any operational improvement will be very beneficial for the 2026 World Championship. Aston Martin needs to manage each weekend as they did in Hungary. Without calculation errors in qualifying, with a firm grip on race strategy, and with diligence in the pit-stops, one of their weaknesses throughout the year.
At 44 years old, Alonso knows the path well, even if it's steep. On Friday, he couldn't take the wheel due to back discomfort, and yesterday he scored 10 points, surpassing Stroll in the standings for the first time in 2025. His ambition never falters.