Written by Jasmin Low, edited by Yu Xin Wang
Aston Martin Formula 1 team has announced that Japanese car giant Honda will be supplying the team with engines starting in 2026, when the sport’s new regulations come into effect.
The Silverstone-based team has had a surprisingly competitive season thus far, as they sit second in the Constructors’ Championship and 6 points ahead of their current engine supplier Mercedes, who sit third in the Constructors’ standings, only 5 races into the season.
Mercedes and Aston Martin have had a partnership since 2009, and Mercedes will continue to provide Aston Martin with power units, gearboxes, and rear suspensions until the end of 2025. The split between the two teams will eventually see the end of a seventeen year-long partnership.
Honda left the sport in 2021 after a seven-year stay, during which they supplied Red Bull’s Max Verstappen with a World Championship winning engine in 2021. Although formally exiting the sport that year, Honda still supports Red Bull Powertrains, which provides engines to both Oracle Red Bull Racing and Scuderia AlphaTauri. This will continue until the end of 2025.
The 2026 regulations, which focus on sustainable fuels and electrical power, have enticed the Japanese manufacturer as they align with the company’s future sustainability plans.
Honda’s Chief Executive Toshihiro Mibe stated, “One of the key reasons for our decision to take up the new challenge in F1 is that the world’s pinnacle form of racing is striving to become a sustainable racing series, which is in line with the direction Honda is aiming toward carbon neutrality, and it will become a platform which will facilitate the development of our electrification technologies.”
This partnership is a substantial step forward for Aston Martin’s future goals of becoming a championship-winning constructor, as they move away from being a customer of Mercedes to a works team.
“Honda and our new partner, the Aston Martin F1 Team, share the same sincere attitude and determination to win, so starting with the 2026 season, we will work together and strive for the Championship title as Aston Martin Aramco Honda,” Mibe went on to say.
Owner of Aston Martin Formula One Team, Lawrence Stroll, said, “We share a mutual drive, determination, and relentless ambition to succeed on track. Honda is a global titan and its success in motorsport is longstanding and incredibly impressive.”
If Honda has been able to provide Red Bull with a championship-winning engine, will it be able to do the same for Aston Martin? Could we be seeing a period of Aston Martin dominance in the next few years? This partnership proves that Aston Martin is certainly the team to keep an eye on in the coming years.