Aston Martin’s Formula 1 driver, Fernando Alonso, has been summoned by the stewards of the Australian Grand Prix to discuss his potential involvement in George Russell’s crash on the final lap. Russell was closing in on Alonso for sixth place when he lost control of his Mercedes W15 at Turn 6/7, crashing into the tyre wall and flipping onto its side. The stewards have requested Alonso and an Aston Martin representative to appear before them to address the incident. No specific reason was given for the summons, other than it being related to the incident at Turns 6-7 on the last lap.
Following the race, Alonso spoke to Sky Sports F1 and stated that his focus was on what was ahead of him, rather than what was happening behind. He mentioned having an issue with the battery during the last 15 laps of the race but did not provide further details. Alonso acknowledged that Russell had been closing in on him for several laps, within the DRS range, and he was attempting to maintain his pace by driving qualifying laps.
Russell, while not accusing Alonso of any wrongdoing, found it interesting that the stewards had called Alonso for a meeting. He described the moments leading up to the crash, mentioning that he was half a second behind Alonso and suddenly the Aston Martin driver approached him rapidly, catching him off guard. Russell expressed uncertainty about whether Alonso had a problem with his car or not, but he did note that Alonso had braked before the corner and then accelerated normally through it, as seen in the available data. Russell stated that he would not make any accusations until further information is provided by the stewards.
Onboard footage and radio transmissions from Alonso’s car during the race support his claim of experiencing issues with the Aston Martin. He repeatedly informed his team about something unusual with the throttle, and the footage shows abnormal vibrations and sounds. At the end of the race, Alonso coasted into the pitlane in neutral, asking the team if driving back to the pits would risk damaging the engine.