{"id":29848,"date":"2025-01-29T09:26:50","date_gmt":"2025-01-29T14:26:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=29848"},"modified":"2025-01-29T09:27:20","modified_gmt":"2025-01-29T14:27:20","slug":"f1-news-honda-admit-we-are-struggling-with-2026-engine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/01\/29\/f1-news-honda-admit-we-are-struggling-with-2026-engine\/","title":{"rendered":"F1 News: Honda admit to &#8220;struggling&#8221; with 2026 engine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The upcoming 2026 regulations are set to completely shuffle F1&#8217;s pecking order. Despite the obvious importance of new aerodynamics, differences between engine manufacturers could make the difference. As Honda work to deliver a top engine for <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/01\/17\/how-aston-martin-plan-to-reach-90-upgrade-success-rate\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Aston Martin<\/a> next year, there are clear challenges to overcome.<\/p>\n<h2>Honda reveal difficulty of 2026 F1 engines<\/h2>\n<p>On paper, Honda are among the favourites to lead the way with the next generation of power units.<\/p>\n<p>Red Bull&#8217;s dominance over the last few years has only been possible thanks to Honda, whose engines offered Christian Horner&#8217;s team a clear upgrade on Renault power<\/p>\n<p>As it stands, Honda&#8217;s engine performs at a very similar level to <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/01\/17\/mercedes-tipped-to-deliver-best-engine-for-2026-regulations\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Mercedes<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/01\/22\/why-lewis-hamiltons-2025-ferrari-will-shock-the-grid\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Ferrari<\/a>. These three names are also expected to set the standard in 2026, especially in comparison to incoming manufacturers &#8211; like RBPT and Audi.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"kfjuDyk_RwB2j0545mqWmg\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2189131498\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'kfjuDyk_RwB2j0545mqWmg',sig:'fOc6wQutj8Jk3vlX0m6dAOPJYiBrWJ7GADaD3wNVdA0=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2189131498',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The arrival of high-profile figures like Adrian Newey has generated immense buzz at Aston Martin in recent months. Despite their downward trajectory last season, the investment into the Silverstone outfit and its potential for growth cannot be overlooked.<\/p>\n<p>A key piece of the Aston Martin puzzle is their engine deal with Honda &#8211; which will be essential for success in 2026 and beyond.<\/p>\n<p>With that said, HRC President Koji Watanabe has admitted there are significant challenges to overcome:<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;We are struggling,&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetf1.com\/news\/honda-racing-f1-2026-struggle-aston-martin-power-unit\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">PlanetF1<\/a> quotes him as saying. &#8220;Now we are trying our best to show the result next year.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Everything is new. The motor is a new 355-kW,\u00a0 [so a] very compact one we need.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Also the lightweight battery, it\u2019s not so easy to develop &#8211; and also the small engine with the big power.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cEverything is very difficult, but we try our best.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<h4>Genuine concern, or managing expectations?<\/h4>\n<p>Of course Watanabe&#8217;s comments are not necessarily a cause for concern. After all, most entities in Formula 1 are constantly working to minimise expectations and alleviate pressure &#8211; particularly ahead of landmark seasons like 2026.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"aYZY-tIpTGpWLn4U4PcUEg\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2188831032\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'aYZY-tIpTGpWLn4U4PcUEg',sig:'vVaO-lfH9g8y036Bklv1S2D1X334vGh47xqShPswasM=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2188831032',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Elsewhere on the grid, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/01\/01\/f1-news-why-audi-f1-have-a-mountain-to-climb-ahead-of-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Audi<\/a> have already spoken extensively about their targets for the upcoming regulations.<\/p>\n<p>Mattia Binotto explains that the German manufacturer expects to be playing catch up in 2026 &#8211; admitting that established engine suppliers will likely have an advantage.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, the circumstances surrounding Honda are very different. The Japanese manufacturer has transformed its reputation from the dark days of its latest McLaren stint (2015-17).<\/p>\n<p>Honda are now a benchmark for other teams to emulate, meaning there is far greater pressure on their shoulders heading into 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike the last few years, there could be significant &#8211; and potentially Championship-defining &#8211; gaps between F1&#8217;s various engine suppliers.<\/p>\n<p>Over recent weeks, there have been rumours circulating about Aston Martin&#8217;s long-term interest in Max Verstappen.<\/p>\n<p>Without delving too deeply into the accuracy of these reports, the fact Aston are linked to the 4-time Champion provides some insight into how closely their progress is being tracked heading into 2026.<\/p>\n<p>In more ways than one, Honda&#8217;s success or failure with their next generation of power units will define the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/04\/14\/f1-news-honda-want-aston-martin-to-create-driver-line-up-we-need-to-win\/\" target=\"_self\">Aston Martin<\/a> F1 project.<\/p>\n<p>There is no reason, at this stage, to suggest there are any real concerns about the Japanese manufacturer&#8217;s engine development.<\/p>\n<p>Honda enjoy a wealth of experienced and highly skilled personnel, in addition to state of the art infrastructure.<\/p>\n<p>They remain heavy favourites for the next regulations, which is likely to influence their expectation management over the next twelve months.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The upcoming 2026 regulations are set to completely shuffle F1&#8217;s pecking order. Despite the obvious importance of new aerodynamics, differences between engine manufacturers could make the difference. As Honda work to deliver a top engine for Aston Martin next year, there are clear challenges to overcome. Honda reveal difficulty of 2026 F1 engines On paper, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4927,"featured_media":17264,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[1566,2452,526],"class_list":["post-29848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1","category-news","tag-aston-martin","tag-f1-2025-season","tag-honda"],"modified_by":"Jaden Diaz-Ndisang","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29848"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29850,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29848\/revisions\/29850"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17264"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}