Dec.9 (GMM) Fernando Alonso ended 2025 proud of his own driving but unimpressed with the final championship table – calling P10 in the drivers’ standings “horrible”.
“It’s one of the worst positions I’ve ever achieved in my career,” said the 44-year-old Aston Martin driver.
“Finishing tenth in the Drivers’ Championship is horrible for me,” he told AS. Despite that, he said Abu Dhabi itself – P6 – reflected the level he delivered all season in an underperforming car.
“I qualified sixth and finished sixth. Absolutely nothing happened in the race – no safety car, no bad pitstops. I never get free positions, I try to fight and earn them.
“I’m happy with how the year has gone, but I’m eager for it to be over.”
Before heading immediately from Abu Dhabi back to the UK to work in the Aston Martin simulator, Alonso said his only real goal in F1 these days is to beat his teammate.
“The only thing I can do is finish ahead of my teammate. There are 20 drivers – ten finish ahead of their teammate and ten finish behind, and that’s the only real benchmark.
“I’ve been doing the same thing for 24 years and I’ve rarely had problems.”
Alonso now heads straight to the simulator at Silverstone. “We’re entering uncharted territory,” he said of the regulations reset for 2026.
“Expectations are higher than what the facts can show. Nobody can say they’ll be fast because we don’t have any references or rumours. In Barcelona and Bahrain we’ll see where everyone stands.”
He stressed that 2026 development would matter far more than whatever Aston Martin brings to Australia. “For me, the hope is more for the car in the fourth race than the one we present in Australia,” said the Spaniard.
“With a revolution like this, you can suddenly be half a second faster two months later.”
Alonso is optimistic, not least because of the Newey overhaul. “We have a new factory, a new wind tunnel, and Adrian Newey is working on the car for the first time. Whoever does the best job will be at the front,” he said.
“It depends on us – if we don’t get it right the first time, we’ll have to get it right the second.”
On Lando Norris becoming world champion, Alonso was generous. “Well done, Lando, very happy. All three deserved the championship – they’ve had a superb year. Piastri was very solid, Max is surely the best on the grid, and Lando has been very fast.”
He also reflected on his long-standing connection to the new champion. “When I left McLaren, he was the test driver, then we shared Daytona, and he’s a good guy and an incredible driver.”
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