Declaration of war!

Honda: “We want to be world champion from 2026”

Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe (left) and Aston Martin boss Lawrence Stroll(Bild: APA/AFP/JIJI Press/STR)

Now that's a declaration of intent! Engine manufacturer Honda has big plans for Aston Martin. "We want to be world champion from 2026," says Koji Watanabe, President of Honda Racing.

Max Verstappen's three world championship titles are also down to Honda, who actually wanted to withdraw from Formula 1 and Red Bull. However, the Japanese company then reached an agreement with Aston Martin boss Lawrence Stroll, who will compete as the Honda works team in 2026. "After we registered as the supplier of the power unit for 2026, we were contacted by a number of other teams who were interested in working with Honda. We then spoke to these parties and made a decision," Watanabe told motorsport.com.

"Honda was very impressed by Mr. Stroll's great passion and strong leadership in the plan to fight for the world championship in 2026. They are investing a lot of money to build the factory at Silverstone."

Watanabe continued: "We know it is very difficult and not that easy. But we need good targets in order to give our best together with Aston Martin. That's why, together with Stroll and Toshihiro Mibe (Honda CEO; editor's note), we have set ourselves the goal of winning the world championship that year."

Alonso remains on board
And half of the driver pairing for 2026 has already been decided. Fernando Alonso will remain with the team and was convinced by the collaboration with Honda. It remains to be seen what will happen with Lance Stroll ...