Honda President Koji Watanabe has claimed that Adrian Newey’s comments about his lack of experience at the engine maker were a “misunderstanding”.
Honda ended its previous works partnership with Red Bull at the end of 2021 and returned to F1 full-time this year, but the Japanese manufacturer continued to provide technical support for the power units that led to further world titles and race wins with the Milton Keynes-based team until the end of last year.
Earlier this month, Newey said he was unaware of Honda’s struggles until November, and said only 30% of the original team that helped Verstappen win his first drivers’ title in 2021 had returned to the full-fledged team that produced Aston Martin’s 2026 power unit.
“I think that’s a misconception,” Watanabe said at Friday’s Japanese Grand Prix. “Basically, our policy is to regularly rotate our motorsport engineers to work on mass production and more advanced technologies such as jets, eVTOL, and hydrology.”
“I mean, we’ve been rotating since the beginning. Maybe my explanation isn’t good enough. And of course it took a little bit of time to rebuild the organization, so I think that was his concern. But now we have enough organization and talent.”
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Adrian Newey explains how vibration and battery issues are affecting Aston Martin
Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll have yet to see the checkered flag in the opening two Grands Prix due to unreliability. In the last race in China, Alonso retired after he “lost feeling” in his hands and feet due to vibrations from his Honda’s engine.
“In dyno testing, the vibration is at an acceptable level, but when built into an actual chassis, the vibration is much larger than in dyno testing,” Watanabe said.
“Of course, the PU alone cannot solve the problem. The PU alone cannot solve the problem. So we are working very closely with Aston Martin Aramco to solve the problem, not only with the power unit but also with the chassis.”
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Despite the car’s obvious problems, Alonso is confident Aston Martin will resolve them and improve.
How can Honda catch up?
Currently, Honda is in a battle with newcomer Cadillac at the back of the grid, with a gap of more than 2.5 seconds from the pace at the front.
F1’s new regulations for 2026 provide for three periods of Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUOs) during the season to allow engine manufacturers to catch up.
The team with the best performing internal combustion engine, determined to be at least 2% behind the manufacturer, will be given a development opportunity. If the difference is 4%, each team will be allowed two upgrades during the season, which could also apply to Honda.
The first ADUO is scheduled to take place after the sixth race of the season in Monaco in June, but this may change following the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian GPs in April.
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Lance Stroll and Alonso respond to Newey’s concerns that Aston Martin’s vibration problem could cause ‘permanent nerve damage’
“Aston Martin Aramco and Honda are not only F1 constructors and power manufacturers, but we work closely together as one team,” Watanabe said.
“In fact, at our Japanese facility, Aston Martin Aramco engineers are working very hard, working closely with our Sakura engineers. It is paramount that we continue to move forward step by step.”
Asked how much progress Aston Martin and Honda will make this season, Watanabe said: “We are working with Aston Martin to come up with some kind of recovery plan, but I can’t say anything about that today.”
Will Wheatley join Aston Martin?
Despite Audi getting off to a decent start after taking over Sauber in early 2026, Jonathan Wheatley surprisingly stepped down as team principal last week, less than a year after joining Audi.
Audi have cited “personal reasons” as the reason for Wheatley’s departure, and Sky Sports News understands Aston Martin are interested in signing the former Red Bull sporting director to replace Newey as team principal.
The move will allow Newey to focus fully on car issues in his other role as managing technical partner, but Aston Martin ambassador Pedro de la Rosa said the team “has to believe in our system”.
Jonathan Wheatley left Audi last week
He told Sky Sports F1: “We’re happy with what we have and how the team is structured. Adrian is the team principal, but he’s not just the team principal, he’s actually the managing technical partner, so that’s always going to change.”
“So Jonathan left. We shouldn’t comment on what’s really going on. We don’t know why he left. We don’t know the circumstances.”
“Really, the only thing we know is that we have a team representative and that is Adrian Newey, and that will continue to be the case.”
Sky Sports F1 Japan GP Schedule
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A look back at the wildest moments captured by in-car cameras at the Japanese Grand Prix
Saturday, March 28th
2:15am: Japanese GP Practice 3 (session starts at 2:30am)*
5am: Japanese GP qualifying build-up*
6am: Japanese GP Qualifying*
8am: Ted’s Qualification Notes*
Sunday, March 29th
4:30am: Preparations for the Japanese Grand Prix – Grand Prix Sunday*
6am: Japanese Grand Prix*
8am: Japanese GP reaction – checkered flag*
9am: Ted’s Notes*
*The main event will also be broadcast live on Sky Sports
F1 will be at the iconic Suzuka Circuit this weekend for the Japanese Grand Prix, which will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports now – cancel anytime with no contract
