Red Bull Racing has been the most dominant team of the 2023 season. However, their dominance began in 2022 after the introduction of new F1 regulations. As things stand it is unlikely to go away until the new regulations take effect in 2026. Amid this, Honda, the engine partner of the Austrian team, spoke about the lack of exchange of information between them, as per De Telegraaf.
The new regulations saw the Milton-Keynes-based team dominate the grid for back-to-back seasons. For the first time since 2013, they were able to build a dominant car. Max Verstappen won the drivers’ championship in 2022, and the team sealed the constructors’ title comfortably too. This season, they are set to complete a double sweep again.
Furthermore, the Energy drink-based team is also working on its own engine department known as Red Bull Powertrains. They’re doing this to stop their dependency on others. Because of this, Honda came up to reveal that there hasn’t been a lot of information-sharing going on between the two parties.
Honda president on the lack of information shared between Red Bull and Honda
Koji Watanabe, the president of Honda Racing, has recently opened up on the lack of information from Red Bull in terms of the upcoming engine. Admittedly, Honda and Red Bull are all set to be each other’s rivals from 2026 onwards.
He said that even though the Austrian team has the most information about them, the same cannot be said the other way around. Nevertheless, Watanabe and Co. wish the Milton-Keynes-based team all the very best till 2025. From 2026 onwards, Honda will partner up with Aston Martin.
Talking about this, he said as per De Telegraaf, “Red Bull doesn’t tell us anything about their engine. And we don’t say anything to them about our development. So there is already a kind of information war going on at the moment.”
How Honda is preparing for departure
Red Bull and Honda are ready to move in different directions in 2026 when the new regulations take effect. While the Milton-Keynes based team tied up with Ford, the Japanese manufacturers joined hands with Aston Martin.
However, their partnership will still be effective till 2025 after Max Verstappen and Co. partnered with Honda after terminating the contract with Renault back in the day.
Notably, the primary reason for the Milton-Keynes-based team and Honda parting ways is because the Japanese manufacturers decided to withdraw from the sport after the 2021 season. However, their decision to make a comeback was too late as their partner was already on their way to building their own powertrains.
