Glock indicates that a separation between Aston and Honda cannot be dismissed.

      "The vibrations are not the only issue."

      The possibility of Aston Martin ending its partnership with Honda during the season is still plausible, according to former F1 driver Timo Glock, as the situation between the two continues to worsen in Melbourne. The Sky Deutschland analyst was critical, stating, "This is a total disaster, a significant setback for Honda. Aston Martin and Honda have committed considerable resources to their collaboration, and now they can only compete to a limited extent in Australia. What a terrible way to start the season."

      Glock added, "Aston Martin will undoubtedly reassess the agreements because Honda may not have fulfilled certain obligations. I can certainly see them contemplating a switch to a different engine manufacturer. The current state of affairs also results in financial setbacks for this team and represents a market failure."

      Sky Italia reporters Matteo Bobbi and Marc Gene noted that talks about a mid-season change in engine suppliers are already happening in the Melbourne paddock due to dissatisfaction from both team owner Lawrence Stroll and Adrian Newey regarding Honda's performance. This crisis has also raised troubling questions about due diligence. Newey acknowledged on Friday that Aston Martin only learned in November that many of Honda's experienced engineers had not returned when the manufacturer restructured.

      Glock found this surprising. "Why did Aston Martin only realize in November that many senior engineers were no longer part of Honda's F1 program? Why didn’t they notice earlier? Honestly, I can’t comprehend it."

      Even F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali admitted he was taken aback. "I don’t want to lie," said Domenicali with a smile. "I was surprised by that situation."

      Honda Racing president Koji Watanabe confirmed to Japanese media that the team has no choice but to manage through the weekend with the two remaining batteries in their cars. Asked about what would happen if both batteries became unusable, he replied without hesitation, "Yes," confirming the team might simply be unable to continue.

      "We can't urgently transport batteries, so we’ll manage with what we have," Watanabe stated. "We'll closely monitor the data and may need to impose usage restrictions if necessary."

      When asked about his discussion with Lawrence Stroll late on Friday, Watanabe said, "What matters for us right now is to address the issues at hand. Until we resolve the vibration problem, we cannot progress to confirming performance."

      He also dismissed the notion of moving forward with performance upgrades before identifying the root cause. "If we don’t determine the cause of the vibrations first, any upgrades we make will be pointless."

      On a slightly positive note, Honda's chief engineer Shintaro Orihara observed that measures taken at the Sakura factory seem to be effective. "Since Lance and Fernando completed 31 laps together, we could gather the essential data to conclude that the initiatives we initially implemented on the test bench at HRC in Sakura are functioning on track," he remarked. "According to our analysis, there are fewer battery vibrations."

      Alonso, known for his lack of patience, expressed frustration about the spare parts situation but kept his comments measured. "I drive the car. Naturally, I’m disappointed not to have spare parts when they’re only supplied to one team. But that’s the reality."

      He also countered what he described as media exaggeration. "We’re feeling far more optimistic than the media, the people around us, and the outside commentary. For now, we don’t see the advancements we’d like, but there are small improvements."

      Ferrari’s Marc Gene, speaking to Sky Italia, was less restrained. "Aston Martin’s crisis is an unfathomable, unimaginable situation. It’s something you wouldn’t even envision in the worst movie scenario."

      Former F1 driver Pedro de la Rosa, now an ambassador for Aston Martin, was more measured yet candid. "It’s a challenging situation, but no one should assume this will persist for the entire season. There’s a reliability issue related to the vibrations. Then the next challenge will be optimizing the engine and chassis performance. The vibrations are not the sole issue; this is a development race. We are just beginning, uncovering problems right before the first race, and now we’re in a tight spot."