Alonso and Stroll hit with back-of-grid penalties as Honda reliability woes deepen in Baku

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from the back of the grid after Aston Martin fitted fresh Honda power unit components to both cars ahead of the Baku City Circuit weekend, triggering automatic grid penalties under F1’s engine allocation rules.

Alonso is taking a fifth V6 engine and turbocharger — the first time the two-time world champion has exceeded his allowance on those elements — earning him a 10-place penalty for each, plus an additional five-place drop for ancillary components, totalling 25 places. Stroll faces a stiffer punishment: a sixth turbo, seventh battery, sixth control electronics unit and eighth set of ancillary components, all of which he had already exceeded earlier in the season, resulting in four separate five-place penalties for a combined 20-place drop.

Because both drivers’ penalties exceed 15 places, F1 regulations require them to start from the back of the grid regardless of qualifying position — though given their pace in practice, the rule amounts to a formality.

Honda’s reliability difficulties have forced Aston Martin’s hand throughout 2025. Neither driver had any realistic prospect of staying within the season’s four-engine limit, and the team and its power unit partner have now opted to install the latest specification across both cars simultaneously in Baku.

The weekend’s early running offered little encouragement. Both Alonso and Stroll finished at the bottom of the FP2 timesheet, with only Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas slower in Thursday morning’s FP1. Alonso’s session was cut short after just nine laps when a suspected oil leak on his power unit sent him back to the garage — an ominous sign given the fresh components just fitted.

At the front of the field, Mercedes dominated the early pace. George Russell led FP2 convincingly on the streets of Baku, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli close behind in second, underlining the gap Aston Martin must bridge even before accounting for their grid penalties.