2026 Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team

[TyreSlip]

CHRIS CRONIN was IMO one of the best, if not the best race engineer Alonso ever had.
The calmness in his voice, and the ability he has to communicate his "suggestions" to the driver, never dictating or forcing anything is truly amazing.
I am really happy that he will be Alonso's race engineer again this year.
I never really understood why they removed him from that position in the first place.

That is the first piece of good news I have heard from this team in a LONG time. Cronin was supposedly promoted to the team strategist position so I do not know how he feels going back to the race engineer role.

Cronin was very competent as race engineer and Vizard felt like a liability that Alonso had to deal with on the radio.

[dr_cooke]

The gearbox issue rumor is pure trash by the way. (THIS IS A LONG POST) I just managed ot confirm a plethora of information. (Source is trust me bro but it creditable enough it upto you to believe it)

Now if rumors are to go by then listen to this. Honda root cause comes from a late last minute design change to the turbo and battery .
.
.
.

Anyways thats where we at.

P.s. There's vidoes on X showing the aston start which clearly sounds like a fuel dump anti'lag like system and also there romournao a previous red Bull gearbox technician that began work a few weeks ago right on time for the gearbox revision that apprently caused the delay.

That sounds really interesting. If they can make everything work together (Monaco or, even better, Miami? Japan would be outstanding), we could be looking at a contender for podiums and wins after summer break.

[FNTC]

If they are working on engine tricks it may also be helpful to appear to be 4 seconds off the pace to keep the attention off the team. But might just be my hopium kicking in.

[diffuser]

A pre-combustion champer is nothing new though. (Not sure why you called it microcamera)
And the rules explicitly say that the compression ratio is to be measured at ambient temperatures. And that's that. Everything else is fair game.

Except they only added “measured at ambient temperature” in Oct 2025. That’s what triggered all the protests. If you write a rule where none existed before — just to save manufacturers money and make it easier for new teams — you shouldn’t create a giant loophole that requires ten times the research and development costs to overcome compared to keeping the original no-limit CR. It’s absolute madness.

This IMO is the most controversial thing of all.
With hindsight today, someone could argue that "ambient temperature" parameter was added so late just to give the Mercedes trick some more creditability or legality.

This is the main reason i think why (IMO) FIA and FOM will be forced to align with the majority of engine manufactures and rectify this situation.

As i see it, even if it is not said out loud by the manufactures, this is a case that manufactures may have threatened behind closed doors to go to court over this, if FIA doesn't rectify the situation, and then FIA will have to explain in court under what circumstances exactly they decide to add the "ambient temperature" parameter so late, and if by then, they already had communications with Mercedes regarding what Mercedes is trying to do.

The whole thing if it goes to court will look very bad IMO for FIA in the public eye.

That's why i believe this is a case that all 4 manufactures will be willing to take to court, and on the other hand Mercedes will actually do nothing if FIA changes the measurement procedures and just accept it.

They know that if this goes to court, will probably not look good for them either, because some heavy lobbying (hypothetically) may have been involved for that "ambient temperature" so late introduction.

I may be wrong ofc, and the things i am saying are all just speculations, not facts, but this is how i see it tbh.

Glad to see some that understands what REALLY going on here.

[diffuser]

CHRIS CRONIN was IMO one of the best, if not the best race engineer Alonso ever had.
The calmness in his voice, and the ability he has to communicate his "suggestions" to the driver, never dictating or forcing anything is truly amazing.
I am really happy that he will be Alonso's race engineer again this year.
I never really understood why they removed him from that position in the first place.

That is the first piece of good news I have heard from this team in a LONG time. Cronin was supposedly promoted to the team strategist position so I do not know how he feels going back to the race engineer role.

Cronin was very competent as race engineer and Vizard felt like a liability that Alonso had to deal with on the radio.

Andrea Stella would have to be in there as one of his best engineers.


I think it's kind of an entry level position.

[diffuser]

The gearbox issue rumor is pure trash by the way. (THIS IS A LONG POST) I just managed ot confirm a plethora of information. (Source is trust me bro but it creditable enough it upto you to believe it)

Now if rumors are to go by then listen to this. Honda root cause comes from a late last minute design change to the turbo and battery systems(software and insulation and anti'lag? (See p.s. below)) to compensate for the stupid loophole exploited by Mercedes and to fix a spool up issue and reduce turbo lag making it as close to instant power as possible(more about this latter cause if this works....) and this meant the gearbox concurrently can't cope with the new torque demand. A new set of ratios was desinged and is already on the car but it NEVER ran on the test bench so they had to do the running with limits not to mention its said to be the reason the car got delayed in Barcelona but the team dont want to fully admit it yet to keep their engine changes off radar and many weren't even breifed not to mention the rear suspension mount had to be redesinged as well to fit the new gearbox and withstand the extra vibrations)

This was also the data anomaly on the test they did on the first day (not barcelona that was apperently a wiring that came loose or hydralics not sure). They found that the gearbox was running way too hot, initially thinking it was the engine so the cooling louvers but apparently they found it to be the gearbox in the data showing clutch slips. Now I don't know if it was the actaul gearbox gears or the clutch or the flywheel which got damaged due to lubrication leak needing to replace the powertrian but either the pu or both the pu and gearbox was replaced.

They continued to run the cooling for day 2 and 3 but played around with it by blocking of certain exits and well are slowly pushing the gearbox again. Remember the current gearbox design first ran in Barcelona, IT DIDNT EVEN RUN ON THE TEST BENCH. This is how far behind we are now due to the redesign but if it works, it is to negate the compression ratio trick on certain conditions, provide very little lag so no wierd long throttling for spooling and no aggressive downshifting to keep the turbos spooled and no weird throttling to increase battery. Apparently the new design allows for regen software to start recouping at 50-75% throttle without the need to money shift or to stamp on the brakes or throttle which is what Alonso was complaing about, being easy to drive with less throttle. Uniquely the engine can deploy at that 75% throttle while recouping at the same time keeping a constant speed sp no newd to LICO (Not sure how this works though maybe I understood this wrong but its a small amount anyways if you do the maths).

Anyways thats where we at.

P.s. There's vidoes on X showing the aston start which clearly sounds like a fuel dump anti'lag like system and also there romournao a previous red Bull gearbox technician that began work a few weeks ago right on time for the gearbox revision that apprently caused the delay.

Would be nice to have the sources.

[Rikrikrik]

Juan Pablo Montoya thinks Aston is hidding the real performance and aero package until Melborune. He said Newey will not test the real package in the bahrain tests. Montoya worked with Newey, but, this is make sense? i dont know, i think no. Aston could be more focused on integrate between Honda, gearbox and new pieces, instead aeropackage.

[ScottB]

Juan Pablo Montoya thinks Aston is hidding the real performance and aero package until Melborune. He said Newey will not test the real package in the bahrain tests. Montoya worked with Newey, but, this is make sense? i dont know, i think no. Aston could be more focused on integrate between Honda, gearbox and new pieces, instead aeropackage.

But then, presumably nobody turned up in test 1 with their exact Melbourne spec? It's not exactly a bold or unusual strategy...

If they really are hampered by the engine and / or gearbox, could almost argue there's limited value revealing all their aero hand. Quicker for other teams to copy a novel front wing than it'll take Aston to make a new gearbox or Honda to upgrade the engine...

[FNTC]

Newey said himself that the car in Melbourne will look different than in Barcelona, and last week in Bahrain it looked very much like in Barcelona (except the livery and working front wing). So I think that's his source. That they have aero upgrades.

Newey from the Feb 10th launch on their website:

This year, there's likely to be a huge amount of development.

"I would imagine that for many teams, including ourselves, the car that they ran in Barcelona will be a fair bit different to the car they actually race in Melbourne."

He said "very different" in some other media quote.

Found it: https://global.honda/en/F1/features/202 ... rianNewey/

You get the feeling that might be a broader theme for this season: keeping minds open to what's available to take the most advantage as things evolve.
"Very much so. The AMR26 that races in Melbourne is going to be very different to the one people saw at the Barcelona Shakedown, and the AMR26 that we finish the season with in Abu Dhabi is going to be very different to the one that we start the season with.
"It's very important to keep an open mind."

[mzso]

Glad to see some that understands what REALLY going on here.

Really? Because you both have the same fantasy?
I'm not forming a firm opinion until some solid info gets out. It could just as easily be that no-one cares, except Audi. And everyone's rushing their updates.
Or there's no trick at all, it's just a media hoax.

[dren]

Different in stuff we see and don't see. I'm not sure how much different the actual car will look outside of maybe the cooling exits getting smaller. Maybe a different front wing.

[Leon Kennedy]

The gearbox issue rumor is pure trash by the way. (THIS IS A LONG POST) I just managed ot confirm a plethora of information. (Source is trust me bro but it creditable enough it upto you to believe it)

Now if rumors are to go by then listen to this. Honda root cause comes from a late last minute design change to the turbo and battery systems(software and insulation and anti'lag? (See p.s. below)) to compensate for the stupid loophole exploited by Mercedes and to fix a spool up issue and reduce turbo lag making it as close to instant power as possible(more about this latter cause if this works....) and this meant the gearbox concurrently can't cope with the new torque demand. A new set of ratios was desinged and is already on the car but it NEVER ran on the test bench so they had to do the running with limits not to mention its said to be the reason the car got delayed in Barcelona but the team dont want to fully admit it yet to keep their engine changes off radar and many weren't even breifed not to mention the rear suspension mount had to be redesinged as well to fit the new gearbox and withstand the extra vibrations)

This was also the data anomaly on the test they did on the first day (not barcelona that was apperently a wiring that came loose or hydralics not sure). They found that the gearbox was running way too hot, initially thinking it was the engine so the cooling louvers but apparently they found it to be the gearbox in the data showing clutch slips. Now I don't know if it was the actaul gearbox gears or the clutch or the flywheel which got damaged due to lubrication leak needing to replace the powertrian but either the pu or both the pu and gearbox was replaced.

They continued to run the cooling for day 2 and 3 but played around with it by blocking of certain exits and well are slowly pushing the gearbox again. Remember the current gearbox design first ran in Barcelona, IT DIDNT EVEN RUN ON THE TEST BENCH. This is how far behind we are now due to the redesign but if it works, it is to negate the compression ratio trick on certain conditions, provide very little lag so no wierd long throttling for spooling and no aggressive downshifting to keep the turbos spooled and no weird throttling to increase battery. Apparently the new design allows for regen software to start recouping at 50-75% throttle without the need to money shift or to stamp on the brakes or throttle which is what Alonso was complaing about, being easy to drive with less throttle. Uniquely the engine can deploy at that 75% throttle while recouping at the same time keeping a constant speed sp no newd to LICO (Not sure how this works though maybe I understood this wrong but its a small amount anyways if you do the maths).

Anyways thats where we at.

P.s. There's vidoes on X showing the aston start which clearly sounds like a fuel dump anti'lag like system and also there romournao a previous red Bull gearbox technician that began work a few weeks ago right on time for the gearbox revision that apprently caused the delay.

If this were true it would be really interesting, I wonder why they didn't use two different configurations: One perhaps without the latest design modification and with the previous gear ratios, and one with the current one. But I understand they want to unlock as much performance as possible, and there's not much time left until March 1st.

[diffuser]

Glad to see some that understands what REALLY going on here.

Really? Because you both have the same fantasy?
I'm not forming a firm opinion until some solid info gets out. It could just as easily be that no-one cares, except Audi. And everyone's rushing their updates.
Or there's no trick at all, it's just a media hoax.

I said "Except they only added “measured at ambient temperature” on Oct 2025. That’s what triggered all the protests. If you write a rule where none existed before — just to save manufacturers money and make it easier for new teams — you shouldn’t create a giant loophole that requires ten times the research and development costs to overcome compared to keeping the original no-limit CR. It’s absolute madness."

Those are all facts.

To expand on the “pre-combustion chamber”: in the pre-2026 power units, most PU manufacturers integrated the pre-combustion chamber into a one-piece spark plug. This means that when you remove the spark plug, you are also removing the pre-chamber.

Since only one injector is permitted, the injector sprays fuel into the main combustion chamber through the pre-chamber assembly. When the spark is fired, ignition occurs inside the pre-chamber, which effectively turns it into a blowtorch. High-energy flame jets are then forced through small orifices into the main chamber.

This significantly intensifies the ignition process, effectively “supersizing” the spark and resulting in a faster, more stable, and more complete burn.

Note - In the 2026 PU regs, the material restrictions for pre-chamber are the same as the restrictions for the head. In other words, you can't use a random metal that expands a lot with heat and therefore reduce the CR.

[zoroastar]

A very particular solution, two separate combustion chambers (in fact they should have given the Nobel Prize if they had geometrically increased the ratio from 16: to 18:1 with only the thermal expansion and related problems). However, according to the rules, you must have a 16:1 ratio at all times. They wanted to be smart because there weren't sensors to measure the hot ratio and now maybe they want to install them. Basically, by regulation you can't do it, but no one can prove it without this sensor. But evidently some engineer leaked the solution (thank goodness, otherwise everyone would have been unaware). The bad thing is that they did it with the approval of the FIA which had allowed this without telling the others according to the rumours, one thing if it were true would be embarrassing.

A pre-combustion champer is nothing new though. (Not sure why you called it microcamera)
And the rules explicitly say that the compression ratio is to be measured at ambient temperatures. And that's that. Everything else is fair game.

Except they only added “measured at ambient temperature” in Oct 2025. That’s what triggered all the protests. If you write a rule where none existed before — just to save manufacturers money and make it easier for new teams — you shouldn’t create a giant loophole that requires ten times the research and development costs to overcome compared to keeping the original no-limit CR. It’s absolute madness.

yess!! its almost like the fia bent over backwards to get audi in, only to pull the sheet out once they had them locked in. its not a good look. any team (not just audi) looking at the CR change in these rules would assume it was a basic fundamental in the "spirit of the rules".

[Rodak]

That's why i believe this is a case that all 4 manufactures will be willing to take to court, and on the other hand Mercedes will actually do nothing if FIA changes the measurement procedures and just accept it.

And why do you think a team can 'go to court' about the regulations of a private organization? Can a tennis player 'go to court' to change rules? Teams have signed up to race under the rules of the FIA; if they don't like them they can quit.