Aston Martin engine partner Honda has revealed its “important target” for the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix, following initial improvement with the brand’s Formula 1 power unit.
The nascent works partnership got off to a dismal start with a clear lack of reliability and performance for an Aston Martin team which hoped to contend for the world championship, as the Honda engine’s vibrations damaged batteries and sparked driver health concerns.
Progress was made during F1’s unexpected five-week April break, as one of the AMR26s stayed in Japan after the Suzuka round to be studied by Honda engineers in Sakura, and Aston recorded a double finish in both the sprint and the main race in Miami.
“At the Miami Grand Prix, we confirmed our battery vibration improvements and our overall power unit reliability,” Honda trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara confirmed in its Canadian Grand Prix preview on Tuesday. “It was also a key opportunity to learn on the energy management side under the updated 2026 regulations, and this will continue in Canada.”
The focus will now be on performance, after Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll qualified 18th and 19th for the Miami Grand Prix, a whopping 1.2s down on the Q2 cutoff time, though the Spaniard was hampered by a gearbox issue causing “random downshifts”. Aston was 78 seconds away from the points on Sunday afternoon.
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin Racing, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
“In Montreal, which is Lance’s home race, we will focus on enhancing the driveability and our energy management strategy to support the drivers in building more confidence,” Orihara added. “In fact, this is an important target of our race weekend. If we can give more confidence to the drivers in entering the corners faster and carrying more speed, then we unlock lap time.”
The ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) mechanism for engine manufacturers will first kick in after the Canadian Grand Prix, providing a better chance for Honda to make up its deficit to the competition.
Aston Martin, however, is not planning to bring any significant upgrades until the summer break, considering it is locked into a battle with Cadillac at the back of the field, far away from points-scoring opportunities.
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