Alonso reaches Q2 for first time in 2026 as Aston Martin upgrades end back-row streak

Fernando Alonso reached Q2 for the first time in the 2026 Formula 1 season at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, qualifying 16th at the Hungaroring to end Aston Martin’s five-race streak of occupying the back row — a deficit that had stretched to around two seconds.

Round 11 in Budapest marked the Silverstone-based outfit’s first significant upgrade of the year, with a radically revised AMR26 chassis introduced for the weekend. A further engine update is scheduled for the next round at Zandvoort.

“It was important,” Alonso said. “Definitely, it was important for everyone in the team as it has been a tough period in both factories. Having the deficit that we had in terms of performance in the first half of the year, and this package obviously didn’t change many positions, but it changed a lot the momentum of everyone in the factory.”

The 44-year-old two-time world champion was keen to stress that the psychological shift within Aston Martin matters as much as the raw performance gain. “It’s not anymore that we are chasing something that we don’t know. We know exactly what we are looking for and we know exactly the targets for the next package or the targets for next year. So that’s, I think for me, the biggest change of this weekend.”

Alonso also qualified ahead of Haas, Williams and Cadillac by at least a tenth, completing a clean Saturday after a difficult first half of the season. He described the upgraded car as more forgiving through corners, with improved load and overall grip making it easier to balance entry and exit. “The previous car we had, it was trickier to drive,” he added.

The weekend proved harder for team-mate Lance Stroll, who suffered a rear suspension failure at Turn 2 during first practice on Friday and missed FP2 as a result. The Canadian eventually qualified 20th, ahead of both Cadillacs, but acknowledged that power remains a concern despite the chassis improvement. “Better, for sure,” Stroll said. “I think we’re missing a lot on engine. We’re definitely much better on grip level, so we just need to find more power.”