2026 Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team

[TyreSlip]

I have a really novice Q.
Lots of posts in this thread , over many months, talk of upgrade "worth" in quantities of time - tenths, seconds etc. What is the nodal/typical laptime duration in mind , when measuring like this ?
Also, say the laptime is ~70s, which could b the laptime in Monaco or Zandvoort, with completely different speeds, corner profiles and suspension stiffness settings. So what does "two tenths" mean even if the laptime "gains" is normalised to 70s, what kind of track does it apply to ?

this is exactly why predictions like this are sorta meaningless. but people want to put a quantifiable number on things so we get them anyway. theres really no way well know the answers until we see the actual upgrades on track.i assume if aston made a statement like this it would be for a track like spain or at a track that teams test a lot at as opposed to an outlier. but the numbers would change at every different track for the most part. if they actually do put themselves between racing bulls and alpine like they want itd be a really good upgrade in my opinion.

To put themselves between Racing Bulls and Alpine would be a 3 second upgrade, a monumental achievement. I am keeping expectations low and am hoping that the car is at least better than Cadillac.

[diffuser]

Does this F1Unchained guy have any sort of credibility? Or is he just a rumor aggregator? He's been linked a couple of times. In this video he presents a fair number of concrete info and values. Of pretty much everything: chassis, gearbox, suspension, Honda development plans, etc.

I've referenced him a couple of times but I have no idea if he is right. He just seems to make sense. Always trust the eyes and the stop watch.

[diffuser]

I saw some 'hopefully fake' rumours of Cowell leaving at the end of the year. I really hope this is just standard fabricated drivel from X rather than the truth.

He used to be team principal. Then demoted to be some sort of liaison. It's a surprise he's still here. (The money is probably really good.)

He strarted off as CEO, he was probably always highereed to head up integration with Honda. Took Team Principal, to free up Krack temporarily till Newey and Cardile arrived. The reality is that Cowell knows nothing about running a chassis factory. So he's still CEO but then came a need to head up a team to setup a plan to working with Honda. He jumped at the chance and Newie agreed it was a great fix with his back ground. In March he said he didn't understand all the rumours of him not being happy. That in fact he was happy doing what he is doing.

You guys keep going round and round with the team principal job and really since Stroll has come to Aston martin, they've never really had a "Horner" type Team principal. It's always just been a face for the team, while all the real heavy lifting gets done in positions behind it. Right now that is Newey and Cardile.

[F1RAM]

The most important thing about this AMR26B or EVO is Lance interviews. He’s usually quick to anger and complains a lot without holding back, but this time he said they’d be much faster in the simulator. I think he might be the most reliable source indicating that things will actually improve this time around. But let's wait and see.

I was thinking the same... He seemed so optimistic. He said something along the lines of "If the updates are good, we would be fighting for points. If they are great, then fight for something more."

[PlatinumZealot]

I have a really novice Q.
Lots of posts in this thread , over many months, talk of upgrade "worth" in quantities of time - tenths, seconds etc. What is the nodal/typical laptime duration in mind , when measuring like this ?
Also, say the laptime is ~70s, which could b the laptime in Monaco or Zandvoort, with completely different speeds, corner profiles and suspension stiffness settings. So what does "two tenths" mean even if the laptime "gains" is normalised to 70s, what kind of track does it apply to ?

No point in trying to normalize anything even with the same exact car the same exact track. You could show up to a track with the simulator saying you are 2 tenths faster than last year, then the weather conditions change, different tyre behaviour, different curbs and track surface, different drivers, different set up and you end up 5 tenths slower.

When these predictions are made in "tenths" the best way to measure this is to use it as a relative time to the leading car or closest competitors.

[diffuser]

The most important thing about this AMR26B or EVO is Lance interviews. He’s usually quick to anger and complains a lot without holding back, but this time he said they’d be much faster in the simulator. I think he might be the most reliable source indicating that things will actually improve this time around. But let's wait and see.

I was thinking the same... He seemed so optimistic. He said something along the lines of "If the updates are good, we would be fighting for points. If they are great, then fight for something more."

Cause he has no filter?

[Chuckjr]

I really appreciate Newey and all he has brought to F1. I had HUGE hopes for this team especially with Fred as a pilot, but their start has been so abysmal in both chassis and engine, it is really hard for me to have confidence they are going to find numbers like 3 seconds in a few more races or even this season. And why is there any confidence Honda is suddenly going to become competitive in 2027? I hope they are, but I have no confidence they will be. There is nothing to believe to think that they will be, is there? Understandably, in comparison to their current speed, 2.5 seconds should be really findable especially with Newey in this. In fact, he has the wind tunnel and spanky new facility he always has wanted, so one would think that the chassis would at least be near top tier, or making much larger strides with the updates they have brought. But no. ](*,)The car has not made any big strides. This car is not even close to middle tier. It’s worse than Caddy, and Caddy are a bunch of rookies. My god.

I hope they find the time and become competitive because Fred in a decent car is extremely exciting to watch and it would make the season better if he at least we could watch some good mid field battles.

[aMessageToCharlie]

To put things into perspective, just remember that it took even Mercedes GP a good 3-4 years and a private tire test in order to compete at the very top. And they had Ross Brawn and MSC right from the start.

Newey is barely a year in after taking over a completely headless organization that didn't know how their own car worked.
Plus he is notoriously KNOWN for going for the extreme "all or nothing" type design solutions. That's why they wanted him to begin with. And sometimes you get "nothing", that's part of the game.

I too want to see Alonso going for it one more time and I too think that Honda once again made a complete fool of themselves and yes it's frustrating. But realistically, Newey needs to be allowed a few years to sort things out.

It would always have been a miracle if they managed to be anywhere near the top this year. Yes, this complete disaster that we got was unexpected, but what does it matter in the bigger picture if you're fighting for 10th or being dead last.
What matters is just collecting data and learning from the mistakes.

Just like everyone had lost hope for Mercedes GP in 2012, I believe AM is in a similar situation. They'll become good eventually. And same as with Mercedes, the old master will probably not be around anymore to reap the fruits of his labor.

[makecry]

I feel we should just lock this thread until the upgrade. There is absolutely no meaningful conversation ongoing, which kinda sucks.

[OnEcRiTiCaL]

I feel we should just lock this thread until the upgrade. There is absolutely no meaningful conversation ongoing, which kinda sucks.

You could just come back on this site when is Hungary race weekend!

[diffuser]

I feel we should just lock this thread until the upgrade. There is absolutely no meaningful conversation ongoing, which kinda sucks.

You could just come back on this site when is Hungary race weekend!

Right, who cares if someone has confidence in AMR making a good upgrade package or not. At this point it's 3 weeks away and none of our opinions will change the quality of the package.

Like Alonso said, we take the new package and look for new ways to improve it after that...