Lawrence Stroll eyes ‘fight for victories’ in 2026 after Aston Martin F1 link-up with Honda

Lawrence Stroll believes Aston Martin and Honda’s new partnership have “all the elements required to fight for victory” ahead of the 2026 F1 season.

Japanese giant Honda, who formerly worked with Red Bull for seven seasons, held their own launch event as the new power unit supplier for Aston in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Aston, who have F1 design guru Adrian Newey as their team principal this season, have long targeted 2026’s new era of regulations as a starting point to work their way up the ladder and compete for race wins and world championships, having moved on from using Mercedes engines.

This year’s car will be the first that Newey has fully worked on and, six weeks out from the season opener in Australia, team owner Lawrence Stroll – father of driver Lance –was in an optimistic mood at the event in the Japanese capital.

He said: “The strong collaboration between the AMR [Aston Martin Racing] Technology Centre at Silverstone and Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) in Sakura demonstrates the depth of our partnership. We are confident that we have all the elements required to fight for victory in the future and we have tremendous faith in Honda’s Power Unit and the engineers behind it.

“Our journey won’t always be easy and challenges inevitably lie ahead, but winning is what drives both companies forward and together we look forward to many successful years of partnership.”

Aston Martin chief strategy officer Andy Cowell, whom Newey replaced as team boss at the end of last season, was also present at the event alongside F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali.

Aston Martin executive chairman Lawrence Stroll was present at Honda’s launch event in Tokyo (Getty)

Honda Motor Co. president Toshihiro Mibe added: “In 2026, F1 will undergo a major change in regulations for both the chassis and power unit. Honda sees F1 as a symbol of challenge and innovation, and HRC, the global racing arm of Honda, has developed the RA626H, the new power unit for the 2026 season, to meet those challenges.

“Striving to become number one in the world, Honda will continue to take on challenges together with the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team.”

Aston, who also have two-time world champion Fernando Alonso as one of their drivers, unveil their 2026 car at a launch event in Ithra, Saudi Arabia, on Monday 8 February.

All 11 teams will be present at a private testing session next week in Barcelona, before two official tests in Bahrain next month. The 2026 season starts in Melbourne on 8 March.

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