Honda is returning to Formula 1 in 2026 as the works power unit supplier to Aston Martin.
Japanese manufacturer Honda will launch a full-scale return to Formula 1 in 2026 as the works power unit supplier to Aston Martin. Honda left F1 at the end of 2021, after a seven-year stay in the sport that culminated in a drivers’ World Championship victory through Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
They continued their relationship with Red Bull through a power unit support deal, which will still run until the end of 2025, and won both championships in 2022.
When F1 unveiled its new engine regulations for 2026, Honda were enticed by the requirement to use 100% sustainable fuels and the greater focus on electrical power, as it delivered synergies with the automotive company’s goals.
But with Red Bull pursuing their own path with an in-house power unit division after Honda had announced they were leaving F1, and aided by their new partner, American car giant Ford, Honda had to look elsewhere – and signed a deal with Aston Martin, who were keen on finding a works partner to develop an engine bespoke for the team.
Mercedes, who have been a partner of the Silverstone-based team since 2009, will continue to supply Aston Martin with power units, plus the gearbox and rear suspension, until the end of 2025.
“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,” said Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe.
“Honda is a company that has a history of growing by taking on challenges and winning world-class races. With the new 2026 regulations, the key for winning will be a compact, lightweight, and high-power electric motor with a high-performance battery capable of handling high and swift power output, as well as the energy management technology.
Honda – who will enter their fifth stint in F1 – additionally have stated that they have no plans to supply power units to “any other parties” other than Aston Martin from 2026 onwards.
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Why Is This A Big Deal?
There’s something confusing about Honda’s recent history in Formula 1, with the half in, half out approach alongside Red Bull. But Red Bull Powertrains runs Honda power units that are looking well set for three consecutive championship doubles.
However, there were no guarantees that success, and the fact that Honda signed up to the 2026 regulations, meant there was going to be a deal done. The Japanese manufacturer has a tendency to make knee-jerk reactive decisions to its participation – such as the one that led to it withdrawing at the end of 2021 – and plans can change in an instant.
It’s not only on the Honda side that it’s such a big deal, though. For Aston Martin, it’s the first time the team gets works support, and it represents a gamble of sorts.
Not on Honda’s performance, as the past few years have shown there are few better options on the table. But it will mean a departure from the customer deal it had with Mercedes that has helped provide the platform for this year’s impressive run.
Aston Martin will have to design and manufacturer its own gearbox and rear suspension alongside Honda, but in committing to do so it highlights just why it felt the Mercedes partnership could go on no longer than 2025.
“We’re building great facilities and we are progressively pulling away from our dependence on Mercedes-Benz, and that is no reflection on them,” said Aston Martin Performance Technologies group CEO Martin Whitmarsh. “They have done a fantastic job for us. They continue to do a great job for us. Clearly, we are here to beat them. And that means we have to be self-reliant. The nature of F1 is, if you want to win, it means beating Mercedes and it’s extremely difficult to beat an organization as good as Mercedes if you’re reliant on them for intellectual property, facilities and components.”
Of the 10 teams on the grid, only McLaren, Haas, AlphaTauri and Williams are not currently partnered with their own in-house power unit set-up or an exclusive works supply. And the clear top four from this season all will have one.
When it’s framed like that, it’s perhaps not just because it wants to win championships that Aston Martin needed to move on from its Mercedes partnership, but simply just to try and have the same opportunities as more than half of the grid.
In the end, more suppliers = more opportunity = better racing.
2026 could get loose.