The 2026 nightmare will continue for Formula 1 racing team Aston Martin at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka. If Lance Stroll has his way, his own fans should either get up very early on race Sunday – or stay in bed straight away. He’s not thinking about reaching the finish line this weekend either.
Lance Stroll is adamant that neither he nor teammate Fernando Alonso will see the finish line at Suzuka this Sunday. The Aston Martin duo had to retire early in the first two races of the Formula 1 season. The Canadian predicted the “hat trick” in Japan on Thursday.
“I think we can do half the race,” the 27-year-old made the next horror prediction. Stroll predicted that the AMR26 would go on strike again by half time at the latest. Racing in this car was “very uncomfortable” for him and Alonso, he said, referring to the strong vibrations caused by the uncompetitive Honda engine.
Honda also has a gloomy forecast
According to Stroll, the only thing that is even more painful than the vibrations is the fact that your own team has no chance at all against the rest of the field. “We’re all pushing very hard to perform better and fight again where we want to be – at the top. That’s everyone’s focus. Now it’s about getting there as quickly as possible,” he confirmed the will to turn things around.
Honda’s chief engineer Shintaro Orihara had already admitted to the press that everything in Suzuka would go down the drain again. “How should I put it… we couldn’t improve anything, we can’t change the performance specifications,” he said of his own engine, which has been causing problems from day one.
According to Orihara, Honda has only managed to test a new energy management setting since the last race in China. This new setting will be driven at Suzuka. He couldn’t say how much time this would take in the end: “But we are confident,” said the person in charge.
