Метка: Aston Martin Racing

Honda targets F1 title bid with Aston Martin from 2026

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


From 2026 Honda will move its works engine deal to Aston Martin, ending its successful association with Red Bull.

Following Honda’s initial decision to withdraw from F1, which led to Red Bull deciding to take its engines in-house and link up with Ford for 2026, the Japanese brand was forced to seek a new works partner when it reversed its exit decision.

After being approached by several candidates, Honda was impressed by Aston owner Stroll’s ambition to put all the key elements in place for a title bid from 2026 onwards.

In an exclusive interview with Autosport, Honda Racing Corporation president Koji Watanabe says that this target is shared by Honda as well.

When asked about Honda’s ambitions with its new partner, Watanabe replied: «To become world champion from 2026 onwards.

«We know that it will be very difficult and it is not so easy, but we need some good targets to put in our best effort together with Aston Martin.

«So, that’s why together with Stroll and Toshihiro Mibe [Honda CEO and president], we set the target to just aim for the world championship in that year. In reality, it is not so easy.»

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Offering an assessment of whether Aston Martin and Honda will have all the ingredients in place to mount a title challenge, Watanabe added: «Probably we’re missing something [right now], but we have to tell each other what is missing.

«From an Aston Martin point of view what is missing on the Honda side and also what is missing on the Aston Martin side. That is an honest conversation to become a top-class team together.»

Pressed further on what impressed Honda so much about Stroll’s plans for Aston Martin, Watanabe pointed to the squad’s state-of-the-art Silverstone facility as a key marker of just how serious the Canadian businessman was about realising his lofty goals.

«After we registered as a power unit supplier for 2026 some other teams contacted us as they were interested in working with Honda. Then we talked to those parties and made a decision,» he explained.

«Honda was very impressed with Mr Stroll’s strong passion and his strong leadership to fight for the world championship in 2026.

«They invest a lot of money to establish the factory in Silverstone. We visited them to see the factory that was under construction.

«Several times we have meetings with Martin Withmarsh and Mike Krack, so the management team. They are very open and the entire team is working in the same direction, it’s one united team. That is a very good image for us.

Watch: Alonso Commits to Aston Martin with Multi-Year Extension

«At the same time, they also think that Honda is a good partner for them to become world champion.

«We have already started a technical working team and also a steering committee meeting to discuss some important issues that we can maybe improve.»



Source link

Alonso will be «first to raise my hand» if he loses F1 edge at 45

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Alonso put pen to paper on a multi-year deal with Aston Martin after mulling over his future options, a deal which will include driving in F1 for at least the 2025 and 2026 season.

Depending on whether Alonso will want to continue or not, that F1 deal can either be extended or converted into a non-driving role with the brand in what the Spaniard called a «lifetime project».

Alonso will turn 45 during the 2026 season and while the two-time world champion sees no signs of slowing down any time soon, he says he will be honest if he does feel he is losing any of his drive.

«It is true, I will be 45 or more and keep racing,» he said. «If one day, I feel that I’m not motivated, not in good shape or not fast…I think I have a very honest relationship with Aston.

«I will be the first one to raise my hand and say: ‘You know, I have maybe lost here or there’ and we will find solutions.

«But I don’t see that coming for the next few years. As I said in Japan, probably one of my best races ever maybe happened just five days ago, so I am feeling good. I don’t see any problem there.

«And Lewis will turn 40 next year in January, so at least I will not be the only 40 plus that you will talk [about]!»

Alonso, who said retirement from racing in general was never an option, explained he used the hectic season start to question whether or not he wanted to continue his flat-out commitment to F1’s relentless schedule with 24 races and off-track activities.

After the Australian Grand Prix, he made the decision to seek an extension with Aston Martin as he felt his love for F1 trumped his wariness of the series’ demanding lifestyle.

«Obviously, Formula 1 takes all your time or your energy, you have to give up basically everything in life to keep racing,» he elaborated.

«I needed a few races or a few weeks to really think for myself if I was ready to commit for more years.

«It was not a racing factor, it was more the traveling, to be honest. Looking at this calendar, I was a little bit afraid that this would be heavy on me.

«There are all the commitments pre-season with all the photoshoots, video, car launch. All these kinds of things are quite demanding for drivers, and for me particularly in this part of my career.

«So I said, let me go through that tough period at the beginning of the year and that tough period of traveling, time zones, big planes and these kinds of things.

He concluded: «I felt that I love too much driving, that I cannot stop at the moment. And I think the sacrifices that you have to make are smaller than the joy of driving and the passion that I have for driving.

«I breathe Formula 1, I live Formula 1, I train to be fit to drive Formula 1 cars, I eat to be fit to drive Formula 1 cars.

«And it didn’t arrive, the moment that I felt I need to change the lifestyle. My lifestyle is great.

«I love what I do, so I will not be happy sitting at home and watching Formula 1 races because at the moment I still feel that I should be there.»



Source link

The unfinished business behind Alonso’s new F1 deal

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


It is an intriguing arrangement for a driver who has always looked across the fence at the best possible opportunities elsewhere, with some team switches that didn’t always work out in his favour.

But as he approaches 43, his Aston deal may well be his last, and taking his agreement into the 2026 regulations era gives him one final roll of the dice to grab that elusive third world championship — or at least a return to winning ways.

It must be pointed out that his choice to stay put at Aston Martin is not one made amid an embarrassment of riches. There appeared to be some interest from Red Bull, but while the team’s management remains embroiled in power struggles and Sergio Perez has appeared to return to form, the Milton Keynes squad was in no hurry to decide.

The signs are increasing that Andrea Kimi Antonelli is destined to be Mercedes’ man for the future, so whoever the Silver Arrows sign for 2025 in case the 17-year-old Italian needs more cooking time is appearing to join as a stopgap solution.

Watch: Alonso Commits to Aston Martin with Multi-Year Extension

Those words are anathema to Alonso, whose main drive is to feel important and appreciated, having sought a long-term deal so he can help build towards a 2026 title tilt.

«In my head Aston was the logical thing for me to do,» he said. «I felt the most wanted in Aston Martin, all the other conversations were just light.

«I never came into any conclusions and maybe more time was needed or these kinds of things, while at Aston there was a clear desire to do work together, which was the same that I had.»

Perhaps there is no place like home for Alonso anyway. In contrast with just two or three years ago, moving from Aston to Mercedes can no longer be seen as a clear-cut upgrade.

Red Bull, then, is working on a hugely ambitious programme to build its own power units for the 2026 regulations, which at this stage seems a more risky bet than siding with the manufacturer they will replace in Honda.

Meanwhile, Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll is trying to assemble a squad ready to topple Red Bull, including some of its former engineers. Add brand-new headquarters, a new wind tunnel on the way and the might of fuel supplier Aramco to provide sustainable fuels for 2026, and perhaps Aston was always going to be Alonso’s best bet to go out on a high.

«I was very clear to Aston in the first conversations that the appealing part of this project is just everything that we are building,» Alonso explained.

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

«For me it was a must to enter a new regulations with a new project, and also with Honda as a partner.

«We have incredible, talented people in the team now on the technical side that will benefit from the new wind tunnel and the new facilities in Silverstone, so there were a lot of factors that made 2026 very appealing with Aston.»

It will not only give Alonso a chance to tie up unfinished business with F1, but also with Honda.

His fractious relationship with the Japanese brand during its three-year plight with McLaren is more than well documented, with his infamous «GP2 engine» comment at Honda’s home ground in 2015 a symbolic embarrassment the relationship never recovered from, to the extent that even in 2020 Honda is said to have vetoed Alonso driving one of its engines in the Indy 500.

But as Honda’s management teams changed and time passed, that now appears to be water under the bridge, with Honda Racing Corporation president Koji Watanabe saying last year that «if we are to team up with Alonso again, as our driver, we have no objections whatsoever in him driving».

Fernando Alonso, McLaren MP4-30 Honda

Fernando Alonso, McLaren MP4-30 Honda

Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images

Just like he received a second chance to make things work with McLaren last decade, Alonso now gets an opportunity to rewrite his Honda history.

Mentioning his one-off Suzuka helmets and the samurai tattoo that adorns his back, Alonso was at pain to point out to the media that he has a strong connection with Japan.

«I have great, great love for Japan. I think the level of discipline and the level of commitment that they have is just on another level, generally in Japan, but it translates to Honda,» he said.

«I worked with Toyota as well in the World Endurance Championship and I’m very familiar with that kind of discipline.

«Honda is definitely a manufacturer that has so much success in Formula 1 and in the world of motorsport, that is always a company that I respected.

«It didn’t work for us in McLaren in the years that they came to the sport, but right after that they fixed all the problems and they are currently dominating the sport.

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing AMR24

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing AMR24

Photo by: Shameem Fahath

«I think they will have a baseline for 2026 that is already very strong. We are going into the unknown, for sure, but if I have to choose one by feeling, I will choose our project and our engine and our power unit.»

Read Also:

At last month’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Alonso vowed he would take matters into his own hands and not let other players on the 2025 driver market dictate his destiny.

By being the first free agent to put his cards on the table, he has now made good on that promise.

Alonso is coming full circle. By staying where he is.

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images



Source link

Reuniting with Honda in F1 2026 «motivating»

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


On Thursday Alonso and Aston Martin announced the Spaniard would stay with the team until at least 2026, when Honda joins the Silverstone team as its works power unit partner.

Alonso and Honda endured strained ties when they worked together during a fraught three-year McLaren-Honda partnership, which was terminated early due to poor results and an increasingly difficult working relationship off the track.

At the time, the two-time F1 world champion did little to endear him to the proud Japanese company with some of the public criticism he handed out.

But seven years on those wounds appear to have healed and while Alonso acknowledged it «didn’t work out at McLaren», he said being able to work again with Honda was a big part of his call to renew his deal at Aston Martin.

«Part of the decision to stay at Aston is because they are with Honda for 2026. It was very, very important to me,» Alonso said.

«Honda is definitely a manufacturer that has so much success in Formula 1 and in the world of motorsport, it was always a company that I respected.

«It didn’t work for us at McLaren, in the years that they came to the sport, but right after that they fixed all the problems and they are currently dominating the sport.

Watch: Alonso Commits to Aston Martin with Multi-Year Extension

«I think they will have a baseline for 2026 that is already very strong, but also they have the capacity in Sakura of building something really nice.

«After the experience with McLaren-Honda and IndyCar as well, we have now the opportunity to work again together. That for me is a true pleasure.»

Honda and Aston’s fuel partner Aramco are believed to be in good shape for F1’s switch to sustainable fuels, which further convinced Alonso the tie-up was a «win-win» situation this time around.

«Obviously, with the sustainable fuels that we will have in 2026, this is something that I would love to experiment [with],» the 42-year-old explained. «We have a great partner in Aramco, so I see a win-win situation.

Read Also:

«In 2026 we are going into the unknown for sure in terms of regulations, but if I have to choose one, my feeling is I will choose our project, our engine and our power unit.

«Firstly, because I think they are dominating the sport, they have a very, very strong engine on Red Bull and AlphaTauri [RB].

«And secondly, because with the new fuels and the new regulations, they will have all the tools available to succeed.»

 



Source link

Aston Martin F1 team no longer in “no-man’s land”

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


After Bahrain, the AMR24 appeared benchmarked as the fifth fastest car in the leading group on race pace, finishing ninth and 10th.

Fernando Alonso subsequently finished fifth in Saudi Arabia and sixth on the road in Australia, prior to receiving a penalty.

In Japan, the Spaniard earned sixth after what he claimed to be one of the best five weekends of his career while team-mate Lance Stroll had a more difficult time, though the Canadian moved up from 16th on the grid to 12th at the flag, passing several cars along the way.

But Krack says that Alonso beating both Mercedes drivers fair and square at Suzuka was a further indication that the team is no longer at the back of the leading group on race pace.

“I think we can agree that we were not in no man’s land and that is positive,” he said.

“Because here, with the high degradation and — you can pass, we have seen you can pass in incredible places, although I wasn’t aware that you can pass through the Esses — but you see that with a large enough pace delta and tyre delta, you can do it if you’re brave enough.

“But we did not seem to be in no-man’s land. We seem to be in the pack. We were ahead of the Mercedes. So that is very encouraging.

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“But again, it’s one data point. Bahrain is easier to pass than here. But we were never really under threat, let’s put it like that. Let’s see, we need to confirm over the next races.”

Krack said that the decision to start Alonso on soft tyres – the Spaniard was the only frontrunner to do so – had paid off.

“We were praying for the clouds to be there,” he said. “And then they went! The interruption [red flag] helped also. And also, when you start on softs, if you have an interruption or slow running, that always helps to introduce them better.

“On the other hand, we have had traditionally, or statistically, a lot of safety cars in the beginning here, so kind of that you can run in your tyres after lap two or lap three. So these were all choices that were made strategically.

“Would we do the same? It is a good question. I think you saw a lot of cars probably being surprised a bit about the hard tyres and also surprised about the yellows [mediums] — they held on really well. So yeah, I think it’s difficult to say.”

Krack was reluctant to give an initial assessment of the upgrade package that the team introduced in Suzuka, which included a new floor.

“We’re looking into everything at the moment to try and understand and quantify,» he said. “Again, it’s one data sample. And this is something we need to find out.

“I said it before, cars are complex, and sometimes you need a bit more time to really understand what you have changed. It was not easy with the lost session [FP2] that we had on Friday. So we are learning a lot about it.

“Again, I don’t have the full numbers yet in terms of we know how far off we were in the first races and it seems we have been a bit closer now. This we need to understand – how much is it? And where do we move from here?”



Source link

Alonso joked about F1 ban over Piastri DRS defence tactics

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


A fortnight on from receiving a penalty for potentially dangerous driving against George Russell during a last-lap battle in Australia, Alonso found himself needing to hold his rivals back once again at Suzuka.

In the closing stages of the race, Alonso was at the head of an intense fight for sixth place, as George Russell back in eighth unleashed a late fightback on fresh tyres and started closing in on seventh-placed Oscar Piastri.

Well aware that fresher tyres would give Russell a huge advantage if they had to fight wheel-to-wheel, Alonso knew that his best hope of disturbing his Mercedes rival’s advances was to give Piastri behind him the benefit of DRS.

By keeping the McLaren within one second of him, Piastri having the straightline speed boost made it much harder for Russell to be able to find a way past.

This was exactly the same tactic that Carlos Sainz had used to great effect in Singapore last year when he ensured that the pursuing Lando Norris was kept within DRS range as that would help hold back a similar fightback from Russell who has been making progress in third.

Alonso’s tactics paid off brilliantly in slowing Russell’s advance and, when the Mercedes driver clashed with Piastri at the chicane late on to delay the pair briefly, the Aston Martin driver made a break for it over the final laps to secure his position.

Speaking to Spanish television channel DAZN after the race about his defensive games, Alonso said it was just normal racing, but cheekily suggested that after his penalty in Australia nothing could be taken for granted now.

«I don’t know what to say anymore after Australia, let’s see if I get disqualified for the rest of the championship,” he smiled.

“It’s clear that having Piastri behind, it was a way to defend myself from Russell, so I was probably taking a bit of battery off on the last straight to get Piastri within a second.

“Carlos did it like that in Singapore last year too, and it’s a normal racing thing.”

Piastri said it had been pretty obvious to him what game Alonso was up to, as he eventually lost seventh place to Russell on the final lap after making a mistake at the chicane and losing momentum.

“I could tell that Fernando was trying to keep me there by the way he was using his energy,” Piastri explained when asked by Motorsport.com for his view on events.

“With how difficult it is to follow in these cars, it’s quite a good strategy to stop a quicker car coming through.

“There were a few tough moments with George but, in the end, I made a mistake and he got past.

“So, disappointing to let that one slip right at the end but I just struggled a bit in general today.”

Watch: F1 2024 Japanese Grand Prix Review – Normal Service Resumed



Source link

Stroll’s top speed radio rant triggered by F1 tyre offset, says Aston Martin

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Stroll found himself having to battle through the field at Suzuka after a disappointing qualifying performance had left him down in 16th on the grid.

He did manage to make progress, eventually finishing 12th in the race at Suzuka but, in the closing stages, as he fought the RB of Yuki Tsunoda, he voiced his frustration at the rate his Japanese rival was pulling away on the straights.

«It’s unbelievable how bad our speed is on the straight, man,» declared Stroll. «It’s like a different category!»

The manner of his message reminded many of the famous ‘GP2 engine’ radio outburst that his Aston Martin team-mate Fernando Alonso launched at the 2015 Japanese Grand Prix against Honda.

But, rather than Stroll’s outburst being a reference to a lack of straightline performance from Aston Martin, which has worked a lot in improving its aero efficiency since last year, the reality of what he was experiencing was quite different.

Team principal Mike Krack revealed after the race that he had looked into the circumstances surrounding Stroll’s complaint and found that it was actually nothing to do with the Canadian’s Aston Martin lacking top speed through either too much drag or not enough engine power.

Instead, he said it was an illusion that had been caused by rivals around him having better tyres, which gave them much greater traction out of corners so they could accelerate and reach top speed earlier.

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

«This is something I have looked at actually,» said Krack when asked by Autosport about what was happening with Stroll.

«What you see across the field is that there are very small differences in terms of straightline performance. But what you have is that at different times of the race, there are different tyre conditions, and the acceleration out of the corners is a different one.

«I think a lot of these comments come from such situations.

«If you look at the power-limited data, you see that all the cars are very, very similar. But the tyre conditions at various times of the race, you are offset by 10-12-15 laps of tyres, and then you accelerate completely differently.»

Speed trap figures from the Japanese GP show there were only very small differences between Stroll and Tsunoda.

At the sector two speed trap, which is on the run down to 130R, Tsunoda’s top speed in the race was registered at 304.8km/h, while Stroll logged 303.4km/h.



Source link