Lawrence Stroll sends clear message on Honda timeline ahead of Aston Martin’s 2026 switch

Aston Martin Formula 1 team owner Lawrence Stroll has warned that the Silverstone outfit will need to be patient with Honda in 2026.

The British squad is preparing for its first season with the Japanese manufacturer as its power unit supplier after parting ways with Mercedes in 2025, and Stroll is realistic that they are going to have to give Honda the "necessary time to develop that power unit".

"We're really looking forward to next year with a huge rule change. It's going to be another big step forward; we have Honda as our power unit partner, we're going to be a works team for the first time ever, it's a completely different experience," Stroll said to the Spanish edition of Motorsport.com.

"Designing a chassis that fits a power unit is one thing, as opposed to having a customer engine and simply receiving it. You need time and patience for all of this to come together."

He added: "It's a new power unit that we'll have next year. You have to give Honda the necessary time, hopefully, to develop that power unit."

While he noted the time that the project will take, the Canadian confirmed that the expectations "are very high, as high as they can be".

"Now we need to give everyone some time to come together and work to bring these exciting new rules and regulations coming next year up to our very high expectations—as high as they can possibly get."

Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing

Honda has partnered with Red Bull-owned teams since 2018, starting with Toro Rosso (now Racing Bulls) and then expanding to Red Bull in 2019, enjoying a successful partnership during which they clinched four drivers' championships with Max Verstappen and two constructors' championships in 2022 and 2023. 

Red Bull is now developing Red Bull Powertrains in collaboration with Ford for 2026 onwards, which led to Honda forming its new exclusive partnership with Aston Martin.

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