Stroll warns Hungary upgrade package must work or Honda engine fix won't save Aston Martin

Lance Stroll issued a stark warning from the Spa paddock on Thursday: if Aston Martin’s sweeping upgrade package fails to transform the AMR26 at the Hungarian Grand Prix, no amount of engine improvement from Honda will be enough to salvage the team’s 2025 campaign.

The Hungaroring round, the last race before the summer break, will see Aston Martin introduce what amounts to a near B-spec version of the AMR26. The chassis has been lightened, the gearbox weight reduced, and the revised package was significant enough to require fresh FIA homologation tests. Honda’s next engine upgrade is not due until the Dutch Grand Prix after the break.

Stroll did not soften his assessment of the current car when asked to identify its strengths. “We can only go forward, so that’s positive. I mean, right now, yeah, it’s been pretty terrible. There’s nothing great, there’s nothing we like about our car, there’s no strengths, so we can only get better,” he said.

The British Grand Prix crystallised Aston Martin’s struggles. Videos circulated widely on social media showing Stroll wrestling with severe understeer at Copse, turning the steering wheel to full lock through one of Formula 1’s fastest corners. The Canadian broke down the car’s specific failings: “We have entry instability and braking in medium-low speed. And then we have this kind of aero stalling, that kind of front-to-floor, front-wing stalling, where we just completely wash out in high-speed corners.”

Stroll added that some of the aerodynamic stalls are difficult to diagnose from data alone, and that he has been trying to communicate the sensations to the aero team back at Silverstone to help them understand what the car is doing in corners where the telemetry offers limited visibility.

On the Hungary package itself, Stroll outlined what the team is targeting: “We’re hoping we improve some of the characteristics, more downforce for sure, but some of these bad aero characteristics that we’ve had for a long time, we’re hoping that we can make a healthier car and just a nicer car to drive.”

While the Honda power unit had previously been identified as Aston Martin’s primary handicap, Stroll was clear that the chassis and engine problems are separate issues. “I think it’s two different issues. We have a lot of things to work on with drivability. We’re down on just power, but then we have a lot of balance issues, limitations, and just downforce,” he said.

The implication is unambiguous: Hungary is a pivotal moment for Aston Martin. A package of this scale arriving mid-season, with the team openly admitting the car has no redeeming qualities in its current form, leaves little room for the upgrade to disappoint.