MARCH 16, 2026

Gulf axe brings mixed blessing for struggling teams

The cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian rounds may prove a quiet relief for some Formula 1 teams - though Aston Martin's Pedro de la Rosa warns the calendar gap will not be the lifeline some might assume.

Fernando Alonso retired from the Chinese GP unable to feel his hands and feet, the Honda power unit's vibrations having taken their physical toll.

Physically, I couldn't continue, the Spaniard said. "I started to lose feeling in my hands and feet - it wasn't a pleasant sensation.

In gyms, there were these vibrating machines years ago, so when you do 10 seconds it's fine, when you do 30 it's fine, but if you do 40 minutes you start to experience some loss of sensitivity - which is what happens to us.

Honda trackside general manager Shintaro Orihara acknowledged the scale of what remains to be fixed. While there are signs of improvement regarding vibration, driver comfort remains a challenge and this will be an important area for improvement leading up to the Japanese GP, he said.

He added that Sunday's multiple retirements - and did-not-starts - showed the 2026 regulations will not be easy - though he stressed that was no excuse for our reliability or performance.

Audi, meanwhile, is another team for whom the April gap will arrive at a useful moment. Team principal Jonathan Wheatley was candid about the workload ahead.

Mercedes and Ferrari have a usable package. Everyone else is going through a difficult phase, he said. "The break in April should help us.

The winter was short, the last few months have been very stressful. We need to work on the engine again in the next development phase - there are still a few things we can improve.

Aston Martin ambassador Pedro de la Rosa, however, cautioned against viewing the gap as a straightforward reprieve. Speaking on DAZN, the former F1 driver said the absence of race weekends was itself a problem.

We're really lacking in laps and track activity, de la Rosa said. "Yes, you're not in the public eye because there's no racing, but you miss out on being able to test those solutions every weekend.

The work will be at its maximum in Japan for Honda - but it would have been the same even if we had run those races. And besides, the rest will continue to evolve as usual.

(GMM)