One of the big changes that Aston Martin will be introducing for next season is a change of engine. They will do so by abandoning Mercedes, with whom they have been collaborating since 2009 (at the time of Force India and Racing Point) to join Honda, who have dominated Formula 1 in recent years thanks to Red Bull.
Honda, Aston Martin’s ace up the sleeve to truly compete for the title
It is one of the aces up their sleeve to be able to compete for the title, and they hope to make the most of their potential, both with their drivers and with their new structure and the presence of Adrian Newey. In any case, the Japanese factory has made an important change at the request of Lawrence Stroll.
Because Honda has already demonstrated the power and influence it has over the Red Bull team, as they have convinced the leaders to remove Liam Lawson from his seat, who arrived to take Sergio Pérez’s place, although he has not lasted more than two races.
In this regard, and taking into account that in 2026 the regulations will be modified where the engines will become more important, with the electrical part being even more important, causing the formula of propulsion to be modified. Therefore, there will be a more equitable distribution of power between the internal combustion engine and the electrical components.
The change in engine regulations in 2026 is key
The consequence is that the power unit will be less powerful compared to the current one, but this will be compensated for by the power of the electric motor. The Japanese are aware of the challenge this entails, but they are confident that Honda is in a good stage of development and will continue like this until next year, when they will equip Aston Martin.
Here, Andy Cowell, now in charge of the green team instead of Mike Krack, has clarified that “whenever there is a change in regulations, there is an opportunity to do better than the others. It’s a kind of reset,” so it is vital that Aston Martin seizes the moment to take the definitive step.
But what changes for Aston Martin if it stops being a client team and becomes a racing team with an engine created and adapted solely for its car? The Briton is very clear that it is a step forward in all aspects, as Honda’s way of working and ambitions can also serve as an example for the Silverstone team.
“This is a new opportunity for us and it’s something really interesting. They are very ambitious and it is a lot of fun to work with them in this initial phase. It’s easy. We can talk a lot,“ say those close to Lawrence Stroll’s team. ‘The commercial part will come in the next 12 months, when we make all the important decisions. Everything is going according to plan. It is already a reality.”
’All we have to do is make sure we can win with Aston Martin.”
In this respect, Watanabe, president of Honda’s racing division, says that, “for now, my only request to [Tetsushi] Kakuda [leader of the Honda F1 project] is to make sure we can win with Aston Martin. But once things calm down and it’s feasible, we’ll have to consider expansion,” in terms of considering being able to supply more teams.
Although the Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) is solely dedicated to the development of the new power unit, it will also have to coordinate with Aston Martin in terms of timing to define the physical dimensions and comply with the design program of the Silverstone team for the 2026 season, in which the British engineer Adrian Newey will also be fully involved.
Together with the arrival of the Honda engine and Aramco’s advanced fuels, Aston Martin is laying the foundations to start the 2026 season as one of the clear contenders to be at the top of the table, with a new wind tunnel, a new simulator, a new factory with state-of-the-art technology and a driver of the stature of Fernando Alonso, who despite his age has shown that with a competitive car he can fight against everything and everyone. In a few months, there will be answers.