Fernando Alonso has said he hopes for the long-awaited Aston Martin upgrade package to put the team into the midfield at least.<\/p>\n
Aston Martin has endured a difficult start to the 2026 regulatory era, along with power unit partners Honda, with the team sitting on a sole point for the season so far.<\/p>\n
Fernando Alonso hopes Aston Martin upgrade sparks midfield fight<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a> for news you can trust.<\/p>\n Rather than bringing a larger amount of small incremental upgrades through the season, the team has opted to work on a single larger update to be applied to the AMR26 mid-season.<\/p>\n While the exact introduction date is not yet known, the suggestion will be that its new package will be placed onto the car either soon before or soon after the summer break.<\/p>\n With several races to go until then, the team will likely have to accept its current situation of being at the back of the field, but the double world champion hopes this new spec can put he and Lance Stroll into the midfield battle in one fell swoop.<\/p>\n Asked if Aston Martin\u2019s upgrade package will be one to push the team forward or cross over into 2027, Alonso replied: \u201cWell, both.<\/p>\n \u201cIt works into 2027 because definitely we need to improve our situation, but I think our hope is that the second part of the year will be a more competitive one, and we can start fighting in the midfield.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, that\u2019s the aim.\u201d<\/p>\n Aston Martin lapped a full second behind the nearest rival car in qualifying at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, before the team registered a double DNF on Sunday.<\/p>\n Stroll emphasised the importance of Adrian Newey at the top of the team in orchestrating a turnaround, and that eyes are already ahead to when the new parts arrive on the AMR26.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the battle we\u2019re in right now until we have an upgrade,\u201d Stroll told PlanetF1.com and others in Barcelona.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re a team, so have people like Adrian, who didn\u2019t join a long time ago, and Enrico [Cardile], they\u2019re extremely talented people.<\/p>\n More from the world of Formula 1<\/p>\n F1 team valuations 2026: Mercedes closes in on Ferrari as most valuable team<\/a><\/p>\n F1 driver contracts: What is the current contract status of every driver on the 2026 grid?<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cAdrian is the most successful person ever in Formula 1. So I think that just everybody\u2019s waiting for the upgrade, and will it be enough to fight at the front where we were in even 2023 in these years? Maybe not, but it\u2019s already a good step in the right direction, and then, in the future, I\u2019m sure we can be very strong.\u201d<\/p>\n Pressed on when the team\u2019s upgrades will arrive, the Canadian replied: \u201cAs soon as we can. So, if it\u2019s going to be just before the summer or just after, we\u2019re pushing flat out, and we see when we can get it.\u201d<\/p>\n Additional reporting by Thomas Maher<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n