HONDA The Power of Dreams

In 2025, Honda entered the final year of its technical partnership with Red Bull. This year marked the end of a historic collaboration with Red Bull that yielded remarkable achievements: Max Verstappen’s fourth consecutive Drivers’ title and Red Bull’s second Constructors’ title. Red Bull and Honda pledged to fight this last year together, to claim both titles.

Red Bull kicked off the season by replacing Sergio Pérez, who had been with the team for four years, with young driver Liam Lawson. Lawson’s promotion saw the Racing Bulls bring in rookie Isaac Hadjar. Alongside Yuki Tsunoda, entering his fifth year with the team, they aimed for further progress.

The chaotic, close-fought atmosphere of the previous year carried over into the new season. Amidst this, McLaren stood head and shoulders above the rest in terms of pace. Their strong form was evident in both pre-season testing and the season opener. Red Bull struggled to recover its car’s performance. Although Verstappen drove brilliantly to secure second place in the opener and fourth in Round 2, Red Bull finished the first two rounds unable to challenge for victory.

Just prior to Round 3, Japan, Red Bull changed Verstappen’s teammate once again. It made the decision to swap out Lawson for Tsunoda. The news of a Japanese driver moving to a top team was huge news for the Japanese fans.

2025 marked the 60th anniversary since Honda’s first F1 victory. The Red Bull RB21 that raced at Suzuka Circuit wore a white and red livery, a tribute to the RA272, Honda’s first F1-winning car. While Verstappen struggled to improve his times during Free Practice, he delivered a super lap at the very end of Q3 to secure his first pole position of the season, demonstrating the champion’s determination. In the race, Verstappen defied predictions favoring McLaren, defending his pole position lead from start to finish for his first win of the season. His relentless drive held off the charging McLaren cars until the end, a demonstration of his strong commitment to Honda and Japan. Fans responded with thunderous cheers and praise for Verstappen.

Isaac Hadjar, who made his F1 debut with Racing Bulls this year, achieved his first Q3 entry and put in a strong fight to start 7th on the grid and finish 8th. Tsunoda, starting from 14th, battled tenaciously throughout the race to finish 12th. He was selected for the first time as Driver of the Day by fan vote.

After securing his first win of the season in Japan, Max Verstappen’s next chance arrived in Round 5, Saudi Arabia. He claimed pole position by just a hundredth of a second over McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, and with overtaking proving difficult, Verstappen was seen as the favorite. Immediately after the start, the front row cars engaged in a fierce battle, with Piastri taking the lead. Verstappen immediately attacked to reclaim his position. However, this overtake was ruled off-track, resulting in a 5-second penalty for Verstappen, who failed to close the gap and finished the race second. In Round 6, Miami, Verstappen once again took pole position. However, during the race, he was unable to match the fast pace of the McLaren drivers. Furthermore, Mercedes’ George Russell, who skillfully used a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) period to change tires, took third place, pushing Verstappen off the podium entirely.

After a series of frustrating races, Verstappen delivered a masterful performance at the Emilia Romagna GP. In qualifying, he set the fastest time on his first Q3 attempt but fell 0.034 seconds short of Piastri on his final attempt. Starting from the P2 on the front row, Verstappen was caught by George Russell starting P3 by Turn 1. However, Verstappen braked late into Turn 2, lining up alongside pole-sitter Piastri on the outside, then passed him by Turn 3 to take the lead. By Lap 2, Verstappen had already built a gap of over one second to Piastri, securing his position at the front. The race unfolded with drama, including a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) and safety car deployment. Verstappen, who had been unchallenged at the front, lost his nearly 20-second lead when the safety car was deployed on Lap 46. However, he rebuilt his margin after the race restarted on Lap 54, convincingly pulling away away from the second and third-place McLarens. Verstappen’s second win of the season was a perfect victory, maintaining the top position for every lap, with machine updates, strategy, pit stops, and team communication all proceeding ideally. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda recovered from a major crash in qualifying to finish 10th. Racing Bull rookie Isaac Hadjar continued his strong form, securing 9th place.

This victory was also Red Bull’s 400th since the team’s founding.

After the summer break, Red Bull clearly regained its competitiveness in the second half of the season, with Verstappen delivering strong performances in both qualifying and the races. In Round 15, the Dutch Grand Prix, although he narrowly missed out on back-to-back home victories, he showcased impressive speed and consistency by finishing second in both qualifying and the race. Verstappen then claimed flag-to-flag victories at both the Italian Grand Prix (Round 16) and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix (Round 17). Dominant wins on two vastly different circuits—the ultra-fast Monza and the tight street course of Baku—signaled the return of Red Bull’s competitive edge. Even at the Singapore Grand Prix (Round 18), traditionally considered Red Bull’s weak spot after their 2023 struggles, Verstappen secured second place in both qualifying and the race, further underscoring the team’s resurgence.

As the season progressed, all teams were forced to shift focus toward developing their cars for the upcoming 2026 regulations. Red Bull was no exception, yet the team refused to abandon the current campaign, introducing significant updates that set them apart. Through continuous refinements—ranging from aerodynamic components to underfloor modifications—Red Bull and Verstappen pursued victory, determined in the quest for a fifth consecutive Drivers’ Championship.

Their efforts paid off in Round 19t, the United States Grand Prix. Held under the Sprint format, Verstappen secured a flag-to-flag victory in the Sprint, then repeated the feat in the race for a perfect weekend. Despite an early incident behind him at Turn 1, his lead remained unchallenged, and he went on to claim his fifth win of the season with characteristic control and precision.

Yuki Tsunoda, who had been enduring a challenging run, also delivered an impressive performance in Austin. After a mistimed qualifying attempt left him 18th on the grid for the Sprint, he fought through the opening-lap chaos to finish 7th, earning two points. In the race, starting 13th after another difficult qualifying session, he made a strong start—gaining positions at Turn 1 and breaking into the points by Lap 2. Maintaining a steady and determined drive, and capitalizing on incidents ahead, Tsunoda crossed the line in 7th place.

With his fifth win of the season and a steady tallying of points, Verstappen has reduced the gap to the championship leader to just 40 points. With five races remaining, his fifth consecutive title remains firmly within reach.

As the season entered its closing stages, Red Bull and Verstappen steadily raised their competitiveness and continued to produce strong results. After securing third-place finishes at Round 20 in Mexico and Round 21 in São Paulo, Verstappen went on to claim back-to-back victories at the Las Vegas and Qatar Grands Prix, reducing the championship gap to just 12 points.

Determined to overturn the deficit in the final race of the season, Verstappen arrived in Abu Dhabi with strong momentum. After taking pole position in qualifying, he made a flawless start in the race, maintained the lead from the opening lap, and controlled proceedings throughout to secure victory. The win marked his eighth of the season, the most by any driver that year.

From the summer break onward, Verstappen finished on the podium in all ten races, including six victories—an extraordinary comeback. Although Verstappen had closed a championship gap of more than 100 points, he ultimately fell just two points short and was unable to claim a fifth consecutive title.

“Everything that could be done was done,” Verstappen said after the race. “We came just short in the end, but I’m proud that we were able to fight for the title until the very last race. I’m not disappointed.”

He also expressed his gratitude to Honda for its dedicated efforts throughout the partnership, adding, “It was truly special to end this long journey together with a victory.”

The partnership that began with Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2018 and continued with Red Bull Racing from 2019 came to a close at the final race of the 2025 season. During this period, the collaboration clinched four Drivers’ Championships and two Constructors’ Championships, while Honda F1 rose to the top level of Formula 1 power unit development and manufacturing.

With the conclusion of this partnership, one era draws to a close, and Honda now turns toward the challenge of writing a new chapter in its motorsports history.