Lance Stroll has conveyed a message of hope that Aston Martin will recover from its current troubles, amid a torrid start to the 2026 Formula 1 season.
The Silverstone-based squad has been fraught with issues, stemming from its troublesome Honda power unit.
Aston’s AMR26 has been so far unable to show its full potential because of the PU, with Stroll and teammate Fernando Alonso struggling with constant vibration, causing numbness and risks of “permanent nerve damage,” as per Team Principal Adrian Newey’s shocking revelation in Australia.
At Melbourne and in China, both cars failed to finish, leaving it rock bottom of the Constructors’ Championship.
Further drama has since followed, with speculation surrounding Newey’s future role in the team, amid Audi boss Jonathan Wheatley’s sensational resignation, prompting rumours of an impending switch.
But Stroll is confident that, despite the early-season setbacks, there are reasons to be confident that a corner will be turned.
“It’s not a great time for the team,” he said. “Everyone’s frustrated with where we are. It’s not why we want to come racing, to be fighting for these positions. But there’s a lot of potential, of that I have no doubt.
“We have a great facility, very talented people inside the team, Adrian, who joined, Honda has won four of the last five championships.
“Right now, it’s not ideal, but we keep pushing forward, and I have a lot of belief in the whole team and the whole operation.”
Aston Martin ‘collecting more and more with every lap’
Asked if there is gathering improvement from the car, Stroll was categoric: “Sure, every run.
“Saturday was my first proper qualifying laps in the car, because I didn’t really run much in Bahrain, didn’t run in Barcelona, and I didn’t run in Australia, so Saturday was the first time I even qualified the car properly. In the race, getting a start in and doing a few laps is just kilometres under my belt, so I’m just learning more about the car.
“As a team, we’re collecting more data and learning more and more with every lap.”
Aston certainly has all the building blocks to be improving. If Newey is indeed set to revert back to a more technical role, then a new Team Principal will surely be able to focus on the here and now, with Newey and Andy Cowell focusing on ensuring Honda gets to work on its problematic engine.
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