Aston Martin’s hopes of completing their first grand prix distance of 2026 were dashed when Fernando Alonso retired from the Canadian Grand Prix.
Alonso completed 32 laps in his AMR26 before pulling into the pits. “Fernando has retired from the Chinese GP due to discomfort from vibrations,” said Aston Martin in a statement.
“It was difficult today,” said Alonso. “We found more vibrations than any other session on the weekend.
“So physically, I could not continue much longer. I started losing the feeling in my hands and my feet, so it was not a nice feeling.”
Aston Martin has experienced severe problems with vibrations from its Honda power unit since the start of the season. Prior to the season-opening race in Australia its drivers expressed concerns they would not be able to complete races because the vibrations from the power unit were so severe they risked causing nerve damage.
Honda introduced developments to its power unit at the first race which it said helped to improve the problems. The manufacturer said it made further gains in Shanghai, but needs to do more.
“We cannot be satisfied with the double DNF in the Chinese Grand Prix today,” said Honda’s trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara. “However, if we focus on the more favourable areas, we ran more miles than in Melbourne which is encouraging. We also increased our reliability throughout the Ssprint weekend, but this isn’t yet enough to complete the full race distance.
“We have improved the vibrations on the systems side, but it’s still an issue for driver comfort. This is a key area to address as we look ahead to the next race in Japan.”
Aston Martin has also experienced reliability problems with both its cars. Alonso retired after 21 laps in Australia. Lance Stroll was still running but not classified as he lost 15 laps due to lengthy visits to the pits.
Stroll retired from today’s race due to a suspected battery problem on his car.
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2026 Chinese Grand Prix
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Published by
Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 – when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring journalist, Keith began running the site full-time in 2010, achieving a long-held ambition to dedicate his full attention to his passion for motor racing. View all posts by Keith Collantine