Honda rebuilt its 2026 F1 operation almost from scratch, and Aston Martin didn't realize it until November 2025 — two years after signing the deal. Chief engineer Shintaro Orihara says Honda's philosophy is "unique": staff constantly rotates between road car projects and F1 to spread knowledge across the company. After the 2021 exit, most Red Bull-era personnel were reassigned. The new team arrived with engineering chops but zero F1 race craft, and winter testing exposed the gap hard. Orihara admitted the development level "was not sufficient for the Formula 1 level" going into 2026. Honda's fix: recall some Red Bull veterans for a quick knowledge injection, then let the rookies learn through fire. The Zandvoort upgrade, already tested in Hungary, is the first proof of concept. If it lands, Honda thinks it can rejoin the fight by late 2027. If it doesn't, Aston Martin's homework problem just got worse.
Read the full story at Motorsport.comWHAT MAKES HONDA'S F1 PROJECT COMPLETELY DIFFERENT FROM ITS RED BULL YEARS
Honda rebuilt its 2026 F1 operation almost from scratch, and Aston Martin didn't realize it until November 2025 — two years after signing the deal. Chief engineer Shintaro Orihara says Honda's philosophy is "unique": staff constantly rotates between road car projects and F1 to spread knowledge across the company. After the 2021 exit, most Red Bull-era personnel were reassigned. The new team arrived with engineering chops but zero F1 race craft, and winter testing exposed the gap hard. Orihara admitted the development level "was not sufficient for the Formula 1 level" going into 2026. Honda's fix: recall some Red Bull veterans for a quick knowledge injection, then let the rookies learn through fire. The Zandvoort upgrade, already tested in Hungary, is the first proof of concept. If it lands, Honda thinks it can rejoin the fight by late 2027. If it doesn't, Aston Martin's homework problem just got worse.
