Fernando Alonso 'frustration beyond imagination' after latest Aston Martin woe

Fernando Alonso described his frustration as "beyond imagination" after another Honda power unit failure wrecked his Mexico City Grand Prix qualifying.

Alonso was forced out of Q1 when his Aston Martin sustained a water pressure issue linked to the energy recovery system.

The two-time F1 champion, who had already shown worrying signs of power loss during final practice, was instructed to stop his car immediately once the problem was detected in Q1 rather than risk terminal damage to the PU.

The team duly pulled him from the session, leaving the 45-year-old 18th on the timesheet. He was also handed a reprimand for failing to re-fit the steering wheel before climbing out of the cockpit.

Alonso explained that stopping on track, rather than attempting to limp back to the garage, was the only sensible option once the fault appeared.

"Yeah, I was 100 metres away from the garage, but probably the problem was bigger than anything possible to do in the garage," said Alonso, speaking to the media, including RacingNews365.

"So the safest thing for everyone else, also on track, was to stop, and I followed this direction."

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Alonso - 'The story of the year'

Asked whether a place in Q3 had been realistic before the car failed, Alonso suggested the pace was there, if not the result.

"Probably difficult, but yeah, we were P12, P13, P11, so we were in the window," he said. "If we had put in a good one, maybe it was possible. But I think that was probably too optimistic. Maybe P13, P12 was our position."

The Aston Martin driver has dismissed any suggestion he could now fight forward from the back of the grid at a circuit where cooling and altitude have already punished the team's package throughout the weekend.

"No, no, no," he insisted. "Here, there are huge problems with temperatures for everybody, so when you start at the back, there is no way you can follow cars closely. There is not much we can do.

"I think we lost a big opportunity, so frustration is beyond imagination, but this is the story of the year."

Alonso also pointed to the layout of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez as a reason the AMR26 had looked more competitive than usual over the weekend.

"Fewer straights," he said. "There are only two straights, into Turn 1, into Turn 4. The rest, with the level of grip being so low, you hardly go full throttle, so it is less power sensitive here. So maybe because of that."

Asked whether he would now need a fresh power unit for the race, a disconsolate Alonso gave a blunt reply: "I don't know. I guess so."

Honda has confirmed it will be changing components on Alonso's PU, so it is certain he will be handed a penalty.