Aston Martin and Honda have reached a cooperation agreement that will come into effect in 2026. The Japanese will stop supplying engines to Red Bull and do so exclusively for Lawrence Stroll’s team in an alliance announced yesterday on the eve of the Grand Prix. Monaco. Team manager today Mike Crack At a press conference in the principality, he gave more details on the deal and addressed, among other things, the million-dollar question: Will Fernando Alonso be in the team when Honda arrives?
“Fernando was not involved in the negotiations with Honda, but he was always up-to-date. We wanted to hear his thoughts. We wanted to get his opinion on everything that concerns the team, because he is a key figure.” member in our structure, as in Spear Walk‘ Krack pointed.
“I think there is no reason to think that Fernando should not be with our car right now. 2026. Despite the fact that Alonso will be 45 years old when the Aston Martin-Honda partnership begins, the head coach of Luxembourg, who did not hesitate in his response, said, “I want to say that I don’t see a single reason why he shouldn’t be there.”
In a recent interview with the Marca newspaper, Fernando talked about the possibility of continuing in F1 beyond his current contract: “It’s true that in 2026 there will be another change in the rules with the new engines… I feel tempted to continue,” he said. Martin Whitmarsh One of Alonso’s biggest allies in the first phase, Mclaren and since last year the CEO of Aston Martin’s Performance Technologies division was one of the architects of the deal with Honda, demonstrating his confidence that the Spanish driver can extend his career: “Fernando Alonso sees that Honda is a great partner for Aston Martin. I hope for a few more years.” It’ll be around and it would be great to have it in the car in 2026.”
Regarding the future collaboration with Honda, Mike Krack said, “One of the most important things to look at is the power unit rules and chassis 2026 will follow them. Workshops and group meetings have already been held since February of last year. It indicates that in order to design a chassis that complies with these rules, you must be fully integrated or increasingly integrated with your power unit. It’s one thing if you have a clearer working arrangement. You can have much more knowledge about energy management beforehand, what can you do? aerodynamic configuration You have to set the right goals, and that’s a great asset or a huge advantage for this new kind of rules.”
Yesterday, Toshihiro MibeThe Honda CEO has already stated that the bad relationship he had with Alonso on stage two at McLaren is a thing of the past and that there will be no veto against him if Asturian decides to stay at Aston Martin: “The past is in the past. We were in a very difficult time, the power unit. “We did our best as a manufacturer and that’s why we came here to win. Alonso is super talented, a great driver and we have a lot of respect for him.”