Honda expects significant progress in 2027.

      Ahead of the upcoming Dutch Grand Prix, Honda's engineers have prepared an upgraded version of the internal combustion engine for the hybrid power unit RA626H and hope that from this stage, the situation for Aston Martin F1 will gradually improve.

      Of course, this will only be the beginning, and more significant progress at Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) is expected to be achieved in 2027.

      "In 2027, we will have somewhat different fuel consumption parameters, but our modernization program remains the same," said Shintaro Orihara, chief engineer and head of the HRC racing team, in an interview with Motorsport.com. "We must continue to improve the combustion process parameters, so we will still focus on the engine and want to make more significant strides next year. Right now, this is our main task.

      We are closely communicating with Aston Martin specialists to ensure our power unit is as well integrated with the chassis as possible. Overall, we are trying to create a good engine for the 2027 season, and behind the scenes, we are actively collaborating with the team.

      After the summer break, we will continue to work hard at the HRC base in Sakura to achieve even more noticeable progress in 2027, although we must remain realistic. Therefore, at the beginning of the year, our power unit may not yet be the best, but we will close the gap with the leaders. After that, we will continue to push to become leaders ourselves in 2027 or 2028.

      Perhaps the most challenging aspect will be achieving the required level of reliability. If the fuel consumption level does not change, we will still need to address reliability issues if we want to improve engine efficiency. However, changes are expected in any case.

      We need to tackle reliability within a fairly short period. In my opinion, this will bring additional challenges, but thanks to the FIA – the federation made reasonable decisions. If all changes were to occur within one year, it would create significant problems. But the process is divided into two phases, and this is the right approach, as we also need to focus on the current season, so it is a good solution."