Honda and Aston Martin to start partnership in 2026

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 Leading up to arguably the biggest race of the season, a big announcement by Aston Martin had fans ready for a strong weekend in Monaco and hoping for an exciting future starting in 2026.

On Wednesday, Aston Martin announced that Honda will become its Formula One works partner starting in 2026, supplying engines to the team. 


Honda has had an off and on relationship with F1 for decades, starting in the 60s. They competed as a team from 1964 to 1968 and won two races. 


After the death of driver Jo Schlesser at the end of the 1968 season, they focused on selling road cars to the public. Honda stepped away as a team until 1983 when they returned as an engine supplier. 


Since then, Honda has supplied engines for Spirit, Williams, Lotus, McLaren, Tyrrell, Jordan Grand Prix, AlphaTauri and Red Bull. 


Honda went on to have a second stint as a team from 2006 to 2008 but would once again drop out due to poor results and sponsorship issues. They have had great success in recent years with their partnerships with Red Bull and Toro Rossi (now AlphaTauri) with the help of improved engines over the seasons and the rise of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. 


As with its on again off again relationship, Honda once again stepped away from F1 following the 2021 season to focus on creating more carbon efficient cars, but will be coming back in some way after informing the International Automobile Federation of its plan to return as a power unit manufacturer in 2026.


Honda will exclusively work with Aston Martin under the new generation of F1 power units from 2026 that is expected to use 100 percent sustainable fuels.


“This is an extremely exciting and important further step for the team,” said Aston Martin Group CEO Martin Whitmarsh.


“It’s clear that both organizations share the same mutual drive, determination and relentless ambition to succeed on the track. We’ve seen Honda over many years achieve great success. We’re still building, but I think we’re very proud, very honored, and very grateful to put in place this partnership.”


Honda also shared their excitement for their future partnership which Aston Martin. 


Aston Martin F1 is a team with a lot of momentum, including a construction of a new factory, and they are currently working on various measures to strengthen the team to strive for winning the F1 championship title,” said Honda Racing Corporation Koji Watanabe.


“We can relate to their strong passion to win, so we decided to work together and strive for the championship title as Aston Martin Honda.”


Hopes are high for Aston Martin to continue their success but the 2026 season and beyond will be a telling point if Honda can take Aston Martin into a new generation. 



 



written by Ryan McCoy

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