Aston Martin has finally joined the Barcelona shakedown, unveiling the AMR26 on track for the very first time and offering the paddock its initial glimpse of a Formula One car shaped under the influence of Adrian Newey.
The team had confirmed earlier in the week that delays in the build process would force them to miss at least one of their three permitted test days during the five‑day opening pre‑season session. Those delays pushed Aston Martin into a tight turnaround, culminating in the AMR26 being flown into Girona airport on Wednesday evening before being assembled overnight at the Circuit de Barcelona‑Catalunya.
By late Thursday afternoon, the effort paid off. At around 5pm local time, the AMR26 rolled out of the garage for its maiden laps, with Lance Stroll completing the final hour of running. Fernando Alonso is scheduled to take over on Friday as the team begins gathering early data on its 2026 package.
The car appeared in an all‑black testing livery, but the colour did little to hide its striking design direction. The first images revealed highly aggressive undercut sidepods and a notably unconventional engine cover and airbox layout, hinting at a bold aerodynamic philosophy for the new regulations cycle.
For Aston Martin, the debut marks an important milestone after a winter dominated by the arrival of Newey, the transition to Honda power, and the pressure to rebound from a challenging 2025 season. With the AMR26 now on track, the team can finally begin the process of validating its concepts and discovering whether this radical new machine can deliver the step forward it needs.