Aston Martin hit with double FIA penalty as F1 woes continue at Belgian Grand Prix

Aston Martin

Aston Martin hit with double FIA penalty as F1 woes continue at Belgian Grand Prix

The Belgian GP goes from bad to worse for Aston Martin

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 19 July 2026 11:12

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Two-time F1 world champion Fernando Alonso has been handed a huge penalty at the Belgian Grand Prix, after Lance Stroll had already been penalised this weekend.

Aston Martin are desperately trying to just get through this weekend, knowing that improvements to their car will be coming next weekend at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Silverstone-based outfit have struggled with reliability and performance issues in 2026, with the team only able to score one point from the opening nine race weekends.

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That came via Alonso at the Monaco Grand Prix, but a repeat of that in Belgium looks to be a longshot, particularly after an FIA announcement following FP3 on Saturday.

It's been revealed that the 44-year-old has had multiple changes made to his power unit, which has resulted in a huge grid drop, which will demote him right to the back of the pack.

The news came around 24 hours after it was announced that his team-mate Stroll would be handed a 10-place grid penalty for exceeding the maximum amount of MGU-Ks for the season.

Alonso has exceeded the maximum amount of energy stores, control electrics and power unit ancillary components, adding up to 20 places-worth of grid penalties.

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Penalties galore at Belgian Grand Prix

An official FIA statement revealed why Alonso will be demoted right to the back of the grid, saying after FP3: "The use of energy store and control electronics additional elements in this case carries a five-place grid penalty by virtue of Article B8.2.8.b FIA F1 regulations, the use of the seventh Ancillary Component carries a 10-place grid penalty by virtue of Article B8.2.8.a FIA F1 regulations.

"Therefore there is an accumulation of 20 places. Article B2.5.4b.iv of the FIA F1 regulations provides that a driver who has accrued more than 15 cumulative grid position penalties must start from the back of the grid."

Red Bull star Isack Hadjar is also required to start from the back of the grid having accrued more than 15 grid penalties, and it became clear after qualifying that it will be Hadjar in 21st and Alonso in 22nd for Sunday's race.

Stroll and 2025 world champion Lando Norris received 10-place grid drops for their engine changes.

In Aston Martin’s case, however, it didn't affect their weekend too much, with Alonso qualifying down in 21st and Stroll in 22nd. That will simply swap around for the starting grid for Sunday's race, and Stroll will then also gain another spot as a result of Hadjar's penalties.

Aston Martin will be hoping that this is the last weekend that they will struggle quite so much, before the upgrades arrive for next weekend's Hungarian GP.