Aston Martin insist ultra slow F1 car CAN be fixed

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, Bahrain, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

Pre-Season Testing

Aston Martin insist ultra slow F1 car CAN be fixed

Aston Martin had a chastening first week in Bahrain

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Sunday 15 February 2026 14:56

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Aston Martin have been the disappointment of F1's preseason testing so far, but the team has insisted that things aren't all doom and gloom.

Lance Stroll claimed in Bahrain this week that his father's team need to find four seconds a lap of pace from somewhere if they're to compete with the likes of McLaren and Mercedes, setting waves of pessimism rippling around the sport.

Fernando Alonso has also cut a frustrated figure, with the team at the foot of the (notoriously unreliable) first test timing sheets with only brand new team Cadillac for company.

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Team representative and former long-time F1 driver Pedro de la Rosa has insisted that the green machine will catch up to their rivals though, saying that the Adrian Newey-led team 'have the tools' to turn their preseason issues around.

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Optimism at Aston Martin despite Bahrain disaster

De la Rosa told Spanish media this week: "We are behind schedule and trying to catch up. We are clearly behind other teams.

"Yes, it can be fixed. In a short time? How short is short? It's not going to happen overnight. We still don't know what our limit is, as we're not optimising everything yet. We're trying to understand where we are. Can it be fixed? Only time will tell, but I'm confident because we have the tools."

The one-time McLaren driver had admitted in Aston's post-day test recap that things weren't all (de la) rosy at Lawrence Stroll's team, saying: "It's clear after the first week of the first pre-season test here in Bahrain that we are behind schedule and not where we want to be.

"We had limited running in Barcelona and we ran into some issues on day one of the test this week in Bahrain. Fernando and Lance have logged some decent mileage over the last few days, but we are catching up and always learning about the new package.

"We have the talent and resources to improve the car, and the team and our partners are all working incredibly hard to make this happen, both at track and back at Silverstone."

F1 Aston Martin Pedro De La Rosa