Wolff expects a lot from the Honda and Aston Martin partnership.

      After a not very successful start to the season, Aston Martin has been steadily picking up points during the summer rounds of the championship. In Hungary Fernando Alonso finished fifth, Lance Stroll seventh, which allowed the British team to rise to sixth place in the Constructors' Championship.

      It’s their best result since the 2023 São Paulo Grand Prix, when Alonso — to date the last time he stood on the podium — finished third, and his Canadian teammate was fifth.

      The progress of Aston Martin, of course, is drawing attention from rivals as well; in particular Toto Wolff has noted it, since this year Alonso’s and Stroll’s cars still run Mercedes engines, but in 2026 the team will switch to Honda power units.

      “I predict that in 2026 Ferrari will be very competitive, but Honda has also been showing its strength recently,” Gazzetta dello Sport quotes Wolff as saying. “I expect a lot from the Japanese engine builders when their partnership with Aston Martin begins.

      “Also, Red Bull will get new engines, and a factory Audi team will appear in the championship… Everyone wants to prepare for the next season as well as possible, so we’ll see who manages it best.

      “If we see a rivalry between Ferrari and Mercedes — that would be a wonderful, classic confrontation. When Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are fighting on track with Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, that will be incredibly interesting. An Italian driver against an Italian car — can you imagine that?

      “I have no doubt that this will happen next season or in the more distant future, and it will be great!..”