Helmut Marko warns Aston Martin about ‘restrictive’ Honda after lessons learned at Red Bull

Dr. Helmut Marko reveals one key concern about Honda's relationship with F1 teams.

Helmut Marko warns Aston Martin about ‘restrictive’ Honda after lessons learned at Red Bull

Honda's Masashi Yamamoto and Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko

Aston Martin F1 team announced its decision to join forces with Honda for Power units from 2026. The Silverstone-based team will finally get the status of a works team with the Japanese manufacturer supplying the engines from the 2026 season. Presently, Red Bull and its sister team Alpha Tauri use Honda power units. Subsequently, Red Bull Advisor Dr. Helmut Marko warned Aston Martin about potential difficulties with the Japanese automaker.

Marko shed light on the relationship between the Austrian team and Honda since the two partnered up in 2019. The 80-year-old revealed, “Honda is very restrictive with communication about the engine”. Helmut mentioned that regarding the intellectual property of the Honda power units, the two Red Bull teams were not given detailed information.

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This could potentially become a cause of concern for Aston Martin. The Lawrence Stroll-owned team has partnered up with the Japanese giant to race with a power unit designed around its car finally. This engine-chassis integration is a major factor in F1 that could finally allow the Silverstone-based team to fight for the world title.

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“For us, it works fine,” Helmut Marko on the Aston Martin-Honda deal

Christian Horner, Masashi Yamamoto, and Helmut Marko, image via Formula1news.co,uk
Christian Horner, Masashi Yamamoto, and Helmut Marko, image via Formula1news.co,uk

The 80-year-old was unbothered about its former partner joining hands with a rival team. Helmut Marko said, “For us, it works fine like this, so there is no possibility [for Honda] to return”. Red Bull and Honda were in talks to continue their supply deal in F1 after the Japanese automaker took a U-turn on its decision to leave the sport.

Unfortunately, negotiations failed between the Austrian team and Honda, with Milton Keynes opting to go with Ford instead. Ford will help Red Bull’s Powertrains division as the team becomes self-dependent on the power unit side. As such, it seems that there is no regret in the Red Bull camp despite Honda’s recent announcement with Aston Martin.

Thus, Dr. Helmut Marko has given a few words of advice to Aston Martin for its future with Honda. The 80-year-old believes the Japanese automaker does not provide detailed information about its engines to its teams. However, it remains to be seen how things shape up for the Silverstone-based squad when the power unit deal comes into effect in 2026.

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