Honda’s revised power unit took its first on-track run in Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team’s AMR26 during Wednesday’s filming day at the Hungaroring, marking a small but important step in the partnership as the team prepares for the next phase of its season.
The new engine was always expected to be part of a broader update cycle rather than a stand-alone change. Aston Martin introduced a major car upgrade package at last weekend’s Budapest round, with 16 developments on the AMR26, and the revised Honda power unit is intended to complement that chassis work.
The timing also matters. Fernando Alonso gave Aston Martin its first Q2 appearance of the season in Budapest before finishing P13, while Lance Stroll came home P14. After the race, Aston Martin stayed on at the Hungaroring alongside Alpine and Audi to help Pirelli with tyre testing, extending a busy few days of running in Hungary.
What Honda said about the plan
Shintaro Orihara, Honda’s Trackside General Manager and Chief Engineer, said the company had been supporting Aston Martin with power unit integration in Hungary and had gathered useful data that would help at the next race. He said Honda would take the important step of introducing the new-spec power unit in the Netherlands, and that the engine would be run for the first time in the AMR26 during Wednesday’s filming day before the summer shutdown.
That places the race debut at the Dutch Grand Prix in just over three weeks, with attention then turning to further running at Zandvoort. For Aston Martin and Honda, the message is straightforward: the relationship is still being built, but the first on-track appearance of the updated engine is now in the books.
A partnership still finding its rhythm
Aston Martin and Honda had a difficult start to their relationship in early-2026, but team principal Mike Krack said the challenge has helped bring both sides closer together. He said the two parties sat down and agreed they were in it together, and that the difficult moments improved the relationship in the garage, in the engineering office, and between Silverstone and Sakura.
Krack added that the process was tough, but one the team had to work through if it wanted to move forward. That context makes the Hungary run more than a simple filming-day note: it is another sign that Aston Martin and Honda are trying to turn an awkward start into a more productive technical partnership as the season heads toward Zandvoort.
