Honda is experiencing pressure following Aston's advancement with their chassis.

      Fernando Alonso stated that the pressure is now on Honda to perform after Aston Martin's significant chassis improvement in Hungary, and Honda concurs.

      Aston's extensively updated chassis showed a notable advancement at the Hungaroring, with Carlos Sainz even suggesting that the Silverstone-based team possesses the best chassis in the midfield. Honda is set to test its upgraded power unit in the car for the first time on Wednesday during a 200-kilometre filming day at the Hungaroring. The new engine, which is believed to provide approximately 50 extra horsepower, is expected to make its race debut at Zandvoort following the summer break.

      "There’s some pressure for Honda," Alonso remarked with a smile. However, he emphasized that the challenging start to the Aston Martin-Honda relationship should now evolve into more collaborative efforts. "We are a team, and we work together," he mentioned. "Honda has been helping from the start of the year to address the car's weaknesses while we have supported them with consistency in our laps, deployment, and software."

      Alonso noted that it is a long journey, but expressed hope that this marks the initial step toward building greater confidence between the two factories. "That is the most crucial aspect," he added.

      He indicated that the performance in Hungary aligned with Aston Martin’s factory predictions and showcased that their correlation issues are being addressed. "What we observed in Hungary was roughly what we anticipated, as the correlation looks good and performance has improved."

      He acknowledged that it remains early days with the new car, which features a different concept, and mentioned that further fine-tuning and optimization will be needed, especially with the impending engine upgrade. "It will be an interesting test to evaluate our standing and what we can compete for," he stated.

      Shintaro Orihara, lead engineer for Honda Racing Corporation, confirmed that the new specification would be tested on Wednesday, admitting that Honda feels the pressure to keep pace with Aston Martin's chassis advancements. "To be honest, yes," he responded when asked about feeling pressure. "Now we are back in the mix with the competition, and every improvement is crucial for us to catch up." He emphasized the importance of introducing the new power unit at Zandvoort now that the chassis is performing well, as it should bring some time gains.

      He regarded Wednesday's limited running as a "valuable opportunity to assess how our new engine performs with the chassis." Despite renewed concerns about Honda’s vibrations during Friday practice in Hungary, both parties claim the issue was addressed. "They were completely resolved by Saturday morning," Alonso explained. "We replaced the power unit with a newer one; perhaps the old engine had issues towards the end of its lifespan because everything went smoothly on Saturday and Sunday."

      Orihara explained that the oscillations were due to "the engine temperature not being optimized in the new chassis," noting that adjustments have led to significant progress. Meanwhile, Aston Martin chief Mike Krack dismissed Sainz's assertion that the team now has the leading chassis in the midfield, stating, "I don’t think so. We'll determine in the upcoming races whether we have achieved better performance or not."