Honda’s Formula 1 journey comes to an end in style as the renowned engine supplier helps driver Max Verstappen win his first driver’s championship.
Honda’s history goes back to the 1960s when they joined and won their first race in 1965 at the Mexico GP. While in the 1980s, they worked as engine suppliers powering both Williams, notably FW11 & McLaren’s MP4/4 up until the 1990s.
Their last win as a constructor came at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2006 when Jenson button secured his first victory as an F1 driver driving the Honda RA 106.
GP2 Engine, GP2 Engine. ARRGHHHH! – Fernando Alonso insulting Honda at the 2015 Japan GP
Honda rejoined F1 for their 4th stint providing an engine to the McLaren MP4-30. Expectations were high, but reliabilities issues and technical failures were the tones of the 2015 season, leading to a doomed relationship. The team finished ninth in the constructor’s championship that season.
After failures despite redesigning the engine, additional reliability issues persisted throughout the 2017 season. In 2017, McLaren and Honda announced that they would be parting ways at the end of the season.
Rebirth at Toro Rosso and winning again with Red Bull!
Honda joined Alpha Tauri (formerly known as Scuderia Toro Rosso) for the 2018 season to become the top 3 engine manufacturer within the next three years. With an impressive performance at the end of the season at the Suzuka Circuit, where both the cars finished 6th & 7th, senior team Red Bull was quick to sign a deal with Honda for two seasons.
Honda finally won their first race as an engine manufacturer in the V6 Turbo Hybrid era at the Austrian Grand Prix in 2019. Honda also secured their first 1-2 finish since 1991 Japan at the Brazilian Grand Prix when Pierre Gasly raced his STR 14 to a podium just behind the Dutch international.
“Not a Goodbye, just a see you later”, Honda announced departure from Formula 1 in Oct 2020
Honda decided to leave Formula One to focus on its overall aim of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. Still, they promised to continue developing their F1 Power Unit for Red Bull until 2022, under the supervision of a newly formed business called Red Bull Powertrains.
It has already been revealed that Red Bull and Honda have reached an agreement to let the company utilize Honda IP to supply engines to their works team and AlphaTauri starting in 2022. From 2023, Red Bull Powertrains will take full responsibility for all manufacturing and servicing of the engines.
“Max Verstappen, You are the 2021 Formula 1 Champion” – Honda going out in style
Max Verstappen became the first Dutch driver to be crowned as the F1 Champion after speeding past arch-rival Lewis Hamilton at the final lap of the high dramatic Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
“We made it, we won the Drivers’ championship, we did it together with everyone involved in our project and our teams and also with the support of the fans. The race itself today was really dramatic and the title was decided on the very last lap of the year. The close battle over those final kilometers perfectly sums up how the whole season went. If you set the bar very high, you can still reach it if you keep challenging.”
“We can say this project has been a success as we leave the sport having helped Max Verstappen win the Drivers’ World Championship However, it might be considered an even greater success if it stays in the hearts and minds of our fans and serves as an example to them when they too have to face a great challenge.” These were the emotional expressions from Honda F1 boss Masashi Yamamoto after the race.
After seven seasons, 141 races, Honda is set to embark on a new journey and marks the end of the F1 Project.
