Alonso Warns Aston Martin Gearbox Issues Could Cause Monaco Crashes

Fernando Alonso has raised serious concerns about Aston Martin’s ongoing powertrain problems ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend.
The two-time world champion fears that unpredictable gearbox behaviour could result in the AMR26 snapping into the barriers around the Principality’s unforgiving streets.
The issue centres on random downshifts occurring within the wider power unit context, a problem that has persisted since Aston Martin switched to Honda works powertrains and began manufacturing its own gearboxes.
The problem was particularly damaging at the Miami Grand Prix, where Alonso ended qualifying 1.2 seconds off the Q2 cutoff time as the issue became more prominent.
“There are a couple of things on the car that have to be improved, and it will be a good test here in Monaco,” Alonso said, acknowledging that the circuit would expose any remaining weaknesses.
“And Monaco is not the place to have a random downshift, to have rear locking or pushing or something like that, because then you will crash into the wall, and the driver will look stupid.”
Alonso went further in describing how powerless drivers feel when the problem strikes, explaining that a downshift can suddenly act like applying full throttle.
“But we are passengers sometimes when you put one gear down and you have push on the engine, like going on full throttle. So that’s the thing that we need to make sure that we made a step in the right direction in Canada, and Monaco will tell the truth.”
Teammate Lance Stroll also confirmed the ongoing nature of the problem, suggesting that improvements were only partial in Canada, with low-speed corners like Loews hairpin still a major concern.
“It was a little bit better in Canada,” Stroll said, “but then every time we’re under 40km/h we lose sync a few gears. So we have to re-sync gears.”
Stroll highlighted the direct lap time cost, noting that losing gear synchronisation through the tight hairpin in Monaco would prove enormously damaging on every single lap.
“Like here for example, every time we go through Loews hairpin, we’re going to lose sync completely on the gears. Then we’re going to have to sync those again, which is huge lap time every time we have to sync a gear.”
Some progress was made in Montreal, with Alonso reaching SQ2 in sprint qualifying, though a points finish remained out of reach for the team across the weekend.
Despite Monaco’s reputation for unpredictable results, Alonso remained cautious about Aston Martin’s ability to challenge for the top ten, given the pace gap to the leading teams.
“Looking at the first races, I would say that there is no chance to score points, because I think the top 10 cars and top five teams are quite well ahead of everyone else.”
Alonso did acknowledge that midfield opportunities occasionally arise, pointing to standout performances from Haas and Racing Bulls at various rounds earlier in the season.
“If one of the Alpines, which is the fifth team, doesn’t perform well that weekend, there is always one [team] doing very well, like Haas in China, and some other teams that perform well that specific weekend. So, to be in the top 10, I think it’s very, very difficult and very hard. But I don’t know, it’s Monaco. We try to do our best weekend possible.”
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