HONDA The Power of Dreams

I became interested in Honda after speaking with Masashi Yamamoto, Honda’s F1 Managing Director, and a Honda coordinator. Partnership talks progressed smoothly, and I believed from the beginning that Honda would succeed. For the first year (2018), we agreed to have Honda supply power units (PUs) to Toro Rosso. At the time, Takahiro Hachigo was Honda’s president, and I mentioned to him that if this partnership succeeded, Honda would supply PUs to Red Bull Racing as well. While there were certainly some hurdles to overcome, I had always envisioned Red Bull partnering with Honda from the start. And at that year’s Canadian Grand Prix, Honda made updates to the power unit and demonstrated a clear performance improvement. Looking back, I believe the discussions concluded in a very positive manner.

I believe that Honda initially struggled in F1 because the team’s demands were too excessive. If you prioritize the chassis constructor’s requests when developing a power unit, performance will inevitably take a backseat. So, we did not specify or instruct the Honda development team, led by Yasuaki Asaki, who had recently become project manager for F1 power unit development, on matters such as heat exchanger size or PU dimensions, but simply communicated that we wanted them to do their best to create the most powerful PU possible. I remember the first time we installed the PU in the Red Bull car. They brought in numerous PUs for testing. Based on our previous experience as a customer team, we were accustomed to having only spare parts for a single power unit, so it felt like we were back in the 1990s. In my eyes, it was a meticulously prepared, cooperative, and powerful start to our partnership.

That being said, it was certainly true that at first, we had to get used to the Japanese way of doing things. Especially when it came to performance, they rarely stated their own demands. However, Technical Director Toyoharu Tanabe had a good understanding of the on-track situation and was able to grasp our requests well. We consistently demanded more power, and Honda responded effectively. This led to our victory at the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix, propelling us forward.

In 2019, Mercedes further improved the performance of their PUs, and to be honest, neither Honda nor we were able to reach that level until 2020. However, despite announcing the end of its F1 activities, Honda decided to invest in the development of a new PU. As a result, in 2021, they provided us with a power unit that far surpassed Ferrari and Renault and was on par with Mercedes.

I believe Honda’s strength lies in the professionalism of its development approach. First and foremost, the company is exceptionally large. To put it bluntly, HRD Sakura’s lobby alone could accommodate the development headquarters of a mid-sized team. Honda spared no expense in doing whatever was necessary to achieve victory. For us, who had previously felt stressed by constant requests for cost savings in development, so Honda was a partner we could only have dreamed of.

Following Honda’s announcement of the end of its F1 activities in October 2020, we continued negotiations, determined to maintain this advantage. We explored various options, including establishing our own PU development company and manufacturing units in Milton Keynes using Honda’s expertise. Fortunately, with the decision to freeze power unit development from 2022, we agreed to receive homologated PUs for the first year and extend our technical partnership with Honda until 2025, ensuring the continued supply of PUs.

The eight years we spent alongside Honda were extremely fruitful. We won two Constructors’ Championships and four Drivers’ Championships, nurtured Japanese drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Ayumu Iwasa, ran a special-livery car at Suzuka, held a show run in Tokyo, and participated in Honda events, building a very friendly relationship in terms of promotion. Above all, through our continued development with Honda, we have learned that while investing in infrastructure is important, people are our most crucial asset. Success does not come through easy shortcuts, but requires the right investments and the correct direction in development. This is one of the most valuable lessons we have gained from these eight years with Honda.