Fernando Alonso revealed that the challenge of the most difficult corners in Formula 1 has changed in 2026 with drivers going from ‘fighting for their lives’ to ‘harvesting battery’.
It is due to this year’s regulation overhaul, which features changes to both the chassis and power unit – the latter becoming more reliant on electrical power, meaning that battery management is key.
A driver may downshift along a straight to harvest or lift and coast into corners, which Lewis Hamilton said was previously done to just save fuel and preserve tyre life.
These changes have been contentious as drivers say it goes against anything they have done up to now, with opinions throughout the grid being split.
Alonso therefore said ahead of round two of the season this weekend in China: “It is a different challenge. That’s where you put the line, if these cars are more fun or less fun, and everyone will have their own opinion because it is a different challenge.
“We used to fight for our life in Turn 12 in Bahrain, Turn 11 in Melbourne, Sector 1 in Suzuka, 130R, Turn 7, Turn 8 here in China.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing, Pierre Gasly, Alpine, Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team
Photo by: Dom Gibbons / Formula 1 via Getty Images
“There were always certain corners that in Formula 1 were challenging the limits of the physics going through those corners, and the driver had to use all the skills and be brave in some of the moments as well.
“When you put new tyres and you go through the corner at the speed that you’ve never been before in any of the free practices, that challenge is gone in a way. You use those corners to charge the battery, not anymore to make the lap time.
“So, it is a different challenge, what you face now behind the wheel. Still fun? Yes, we love racing. Is it the future? We don’t know.
“But yeah, it is a different challenge and because I grew up on the other one and I was challenging myself in the corners, I probably prefer the other one. But I was super lucky to race in that era and I still feel lucky that I race now, so I like both.”
Aston Martin still stuck “at square one”
What quite possibly makes the challenge harder for Alonso, though, is that his Aston Martin team has endured a horrible start to the new era, with vibrations in the Honda engine causing vast problems.
The vibrations have caused repeated battery failures leading the team to have zero spares in Melbourne, where both drivers failed to finish the race and the situation is expected to be similar at Shanghai.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Lars Baron / Getty Images
When asked what a positive weekend would entail, Alonso replied: “I think obviously when we are able to do laps without any issues, I think they are very important laps because even now here with Esteban [Ocon] and Pierre [Gasly], they were not optimised for Australia and apparently it was the same case for everybody.
“They are, I don’t know, maybe 10 times ahead of us. If they completed 1,000 laps since Barcelona test, we completed maybe 100, so we are nine or ten times behind.
“So, if they are still not perfectly optimised, imagine ourselves. We are at square one, so we really need the laps, we really need to be able to practice and to find the window on the car and the chassis side.
“That will obviously be very important for the weekend, and I will be happy if we leave China with a more or less normal free practice, more or less normal quali, accumulating laps and probably attempting the full race on Sunday, if we are allowed.”
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