Carlos Sainz details Fernando Alonso conversation over 'complicated' Aston Martin woes

Carlos Sainz has revealed he had an extensive conversation with compatriot Fernando Alonso over the "not ideal" situations at Aston Martin and Williams.

Heading into the 2026 F1 season, the Silverstone squad looks likely to be at the bottom of the pile, below even the fledgling Cadillac outfit and Audi, which is in its first campaign after taking over the Sauber entry and developing its own power unit.

Whilst Aston Martin and Honda are in the first year of their partnership, both entities are well established in F1, and the relationship has already fallen far short of early expectations.

After missing most of the private shakedown in Barcelona, the AMR26 completed significantly less mileage during testing in Bahrain, with under 400 laps across nine days of track action.

Sainz can empathise with Aston Martin’s plight. Williams missed the trip to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, and the FW48 is slated to start the season overweight and on the back foot, despite strong running in Sakhir.

Nonetheless, he insists he is "eager" to see how the James Vowles-led team responds.

Speaking to Mundo Deportivo, he touched upon his shared experience with his fellow Spaniard, saying: "I ran into Fernando one day in the paddock and we talked for a good 20 minutes, catching up a bit.

"And well, he’s in a similar situation to me, not ideal, complicated, but eager to see what his team is capable of bringing and to see his team’s ability to react."

The four-time grand prix winner explained that all he needs to witness is that Williams has the capacity to react to the latest setback to be satisfied with the difficult situation, something he believes is true of Alonso, too.

The 31-year-old wished the two-time F1 drivers’ champion well and expressed his hope that the rival team can turn things around.

"In the end, we both depend on nothing more and nothing less than seeing the reaction capacity we have in our team to the complicated situation in which each of us finds ourselves," he added.

"But I also wish him all the best, and I hope that Aston Martin and Honda improve on what they showed in Bahrain."