Aston Martin Looks Up to Honda After Japanese Giants Helped Red Bull Dominate F1

After a frustrating few years with Renault in the turbo hybrid era, Red Bull decided to switch to Honda for their engine and this was a decision they will never regret. Since their partnership began, Red Bull and Honda have started a new era of dominance that is ongoing. Now, as per FormulaPassion, Aston Martin, who are all set to partner with the Japanese giants from 2026 onwards, have decided to put all their hopes on them.

Honda joined hands with Red Bull in 2019 and began to supply engines to Red Bull and Toro Rosso [current AlphaTauri]. Even though they showed signs of improvement along with much better reliability, they were still behind dominant the Mercedes.

However, the turnaround came in 2021 when Verstappen was as quick as Hamilton, and from there on, there was no looking back. With the Honda engine, the Dutchman has taken 13 wins in 16 races so far in 2023 and is a few points away from claiming his third straight world championship.

Aston Martin has all faith in Honda after Red Bull masterpiece

Apart from the sheer talent of Verstappen, Honda played a big role in helping Red Bull win two consecutive constructors’ titles. The Milton-Keynes-based team took 15 wins in 16 races this season. Citing this, Luca Furbatto, Aston Martin’s engineering director, opened up about their hopes from 2026.

Talking about this, he said as per FormulaPassion, “From 2026, with our gearbox and the Honda power unit, we will be in control of our destiny. If we want to take the next step towards victory, this is what we have to do.”

Aston Martin tied up with Honda for the 2026 F1 season and beyond with immense hope despite some recent drawbacks. On the other hand, Red Bull found Ford as a partner as the Milton-Keynes-based team are all set to part ways with the Minato-based company after 2025.

How is Aston Martin performing in 2023?

After having two underwhelming seasons in 2021 and 2022, Aston Martin made a huge leap forward in terms of performance at the start of 2023. Even though they are not the best team, they were consistently behind the Red Bulls, finishing in the podium places.

Once the best team on the grid after Red Bull, their advancement took a toll, and they are struggling in P4. They got overtaken by Mercedes and Ferrari already, and will need to hold off a resurgent McLaren in the last six races of the season.

Aston Martin is currently taking the engine from Mercedes and is one of the three client teams of the German manufacturers. Nevertheless, they need to stay with the Silver Arrows for two more seasons.