The 2025 Azerbaijan GP was a bruising weekend for Aston Martin, as both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll struggled to make headway on the streets of Baku. The AMR25 never looked comfortable on the low-downforce layout, leaving both drivers frustrated and already eyeing opportunities elsewhere.
Alonso narrowly missed out on Q3, lining up 11th. Stroll, meanwhile, found himself 14th after his final flying run was hampered by gusty conditions. The Canadian admitted afterwards that the session slipped away in a moment, but Aston Martin had already tempered expectations knowing their car would be exposed on Baku’s long straight.
Alonso: “We were very very slow today”
The race itself soon turned into damage limitation. Alonso jumped the start after reacting to Oscar Piastri’s movement ahead of him, receiving a five-second penalty that he served early.
Yet the Spaniard conceded it made little difference given the team’s lack of raw pace. Speaking to media, Alonso explained:
“Yeah, I react to Oscar’s movement and obviously we both went before the lights unfortunately, but yeah I think [penalty] probably didn’t change much on the race outcome because we were very very slow today and yeah we need to improve for next one.”
From his 11th-place grid slot, Alonso faded to 15th at the flag, over a minute adrift of race winner Max Verstappen. The stewards handed Piastri a five-second penalty, but he crashed out on the opening lap and fortunately avoided carrying the sanction over to Marina Bay.
Looking ahead, Alonso addressed the need to look beyond Baku, warning that similar challenges could await at other low-downforce venues.
“I think we have a car that has certain characteristics, not the ones of Monza, not the ones of Baku and I think not the ones of Vegas or Mexico, so I expect in Vegas and Mexico to be at the back of the grid and there are other four races that hopefully we take opportunities and we score a few points.”
Stroll hopes Singapore could be a better weekend for them
Lance Stroll’s Sunday was equally disappointing. The Silverstone-based outfit gambled on extending his first stint in the hope of a safety car, but with the race running green from after Piastri’s crash to finish, the move left him with little to fight for.
“Well, we stayed out for a long time hoping for a safety car on the first stints and then it never came so that was kind of the end of our race.”
The Canadian eventually crossed the line 17th, almost a lap down, never looking in contention for points. He was quick to shift focus towards more favourable circuits.
“Yeah, hopefully Singapore we’re more competitive and yeah, we can have a better weekend there.”
Aston Martin left Baku empty-handed, a result that proved costly in the Constructors’ Championship. Direct rivals Williams and Racing Bulls capitalised with strong points finishes, with Williams even celebrating a podium, which saw Aston Martin slide to seventh in the standings. With the gap widening, their target of finishing fifth now looks increasingly out of reach.
