Honda announces launch date for Aston Martin F1 comeback

Honda has announced it is to unveil its 2026 F1 power unit at a special event in Tokyo ahead of its comeback with Aston Martin.

For the new era of power unit rules coming in for next season, Honda has returned to F1 as an engine supplier after formally withdrawing from its Red Bull partnership at the end of 2021.

Although it quietly reversed that decision and still provided technical support to Red Bull Powertrains until the end of the 2025 season, the Japanese firm did not re-enter grand prix racing.

Instead, all focus was placed on the 2026 rules, which feature three times as much electrical energy, up to 350kw from 120kw in 2025, the removal of the MGU-H and the use of 100% synthetic fuels.

Unlike when it entered the turbo hybrid era for the ill-fated McLaren project in 2015, Honda is not missing a year as it teams up with Aston Martin, which is seeking to win the world championship, having signed Adrian Newey and invested in a state-of-the-art facility at Silverstone.

The new power unit will be unveiled on 20th January, 2026 in Tokyo at 13:00 local time, or 04:00 GMT on the 20th. 

Speakers at the event will include the president and CEO of the Honda Motor Company, Toshihiro Mibe, his F1 counterpart Stefano Domenicali, and Aston executive chairman Lawrence Stroll.