Honda hopes to recreate Red Bull successes with Aston Martin and Newey

Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) chairman Koji Watanabe believes Adrian Newey's arrival in Aston Martin's Formula 1 ranks means the company could create the “best car in the world”as she did with Red Bull.

Adrian Newey's arrival at the Silverstone-based team next year was revealed in September, following months of speculation over what his future in F1 would be. The Briton announced his departure from Red Bull earlier this season, after almost two decades with the Milton Keynes outfit, being among a number of key members of staff who have sought employment elsewhere in the past. recent.

Honda had been in partnership with Red Bull since 2019, although the Japanese engine manufacturer officially left F1 at the end of the 2021 season, instead becoming a technical partner of the world champion manufacturer.

The marriage faced the biggest problem of teams other than Ferrari and Mercedes, that is, the requirements of the chassis design team and the power unit design team can often conflict, this which means that compromises must be made rather than having a harmonious development process.

Despite this, Red Bull and Honda have won every drivers' championship since 2021 and the constructors' title in 2022 and 2023.

Aston Martin will face the same task when the team partners with Honda for F1's new era of technical regulations in 2026, but Watanabe told Motorsport.com in an exclusive interview that he hoped Newey's arrival could trigger some form of replication of the Japanese brand's achievements during this near-decade with Red Bull.

“We are happy to see that Aston Martin is taking regular steps to strengthen its competitiveness as a team,” Watanabe said. “We are very encouraged that they have consolidated their management structure, including the involvement of Newey.”

“I've worked with Newey before and he has an incredible passion for building fast cars. As we build the power unit and they build the chassis of the car, sometimes our visions don't align not always in these cases there are conflicts between what the chassis team wants and what the power unit team wants, but together we managed to create the best car in the world. .”

“With Newey joining Aston Martin, I expect similar challenges to come, but I hope this will help the Aston Martin Honda team become the best in the world. We are ready to do so. facing certain conflicts. Of course, it's not just with Newey.”