Fernando Alonso rues ‘one in 10 million’ suspension failure after freak Monza exit

Fernando Alonso has detailed the bizarre suspension failure that forced his retirement from the Italian Grand Prix, describing it as a “one in 10 million” incident triggered by damage sustained early in the race.

Having pitted from a points-paying position, Alonso rejoined and was running in the midfield mix when a right-front suspension failure on lap 24 ended his race. Team analysis later linked the issue to gravel hitting the car on the opening lap in “multiple areas, including the suspension,” with the component ultimately failing due to “low-level continuous loading.”

“Not a production issue — just bad luck”

Alonso said the team confirmed the failure was not caused by kerb riding nor by a quality control problem. “It was just bad luck as the stone hit a physical part of the car, which was not strong enough,” he explained, calling it the sort of fluke that is statistically improbable to repeat.

The DNF marked Alonso’s second points loss through reliability this season after an engine failure while running sixth in Monaco. Reflecting on the setback, he struck a philosophical tone: these things “can happen,” and the priority now is ensuring a competitive package — and “normal luck” — for next year.