Aston Martin drivers face nerve damage risk from severe car vibrations in F1 shocker

Aston Martin’s Formula 1 2026 season has faced a significant setback as the team principal, Adrian Newey, unveiled that drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll may face potential nerve damage from severe vibration from the designs of the team's new cars.

Ahead of Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix, the Newry confirmed that the two-time champion Alonso is not able to complete more than 25 consecutive laps “before he will risk permanent nerve damage to his hands.”

Stroll, on the other hand, even faces a stricter limit of 15 laps.

The news reveals the magnitude of Aston Martin's difficulties after a catastrophic pre-season testing campaign in Bahrain, during which they accumulated the lowest mileage of any team on the grid.

The vibrations coming out of Aston Martin's new Honda-powered engine have not only led to reliability issues, including lost mirrors and a detached taillight, but also pose a serious threat to the health of their drivers.

Newey told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday, March 5, that: “We are going to have to be very heavily restricted on how many laps we do in the race until we get on top of the source of the vibration.

Describing the sensation, Alonso stated that it left him feeling “numb” after testing.

“It shouldn’t be there, and we don’t know the consequences either if you keep driving like that for months. A solution has to be implemented.”

Acknowledging the vibration as “unexpected,” Honda Racing Corporation president Koji Watanabe stated that it is related to damaged battery-related components.

The manufacturers have addressed the issue and introduced some countermeasures for this weekend. However, the effectiveness of those measures has no substantial evidence.