Honda changes F1 design boss after slow start to return

Honda has changed the leadership of its Formula 1 engine programme after the Japanese manufacturer's disappointing start to its return to the sport this season.

Honda, who won four world titles with Red Bull and Max Verstappen from 2021-24, joined forces with Aston Martin as their works engine partner for 2026.

But the pair are 10th of 11 teams in the constructors' championship and have a best result of ninth for Fernando Alonso in the Dutch Grand Prix.

On Monday, Honda announced a new head of its engine development programme.

Yoichiro Fukao, the former deputy leader of the project, will become Large Project Leader of the F1 project.

He has replaced Tetsushi Kakuda, who has led power-unit development this season.

A statement said: "This organisational change is a planned transition designed to ensure the reliable transfer of technical expertise to the next generation of engineers.

"Following the introduction of the new regulations in 2026, and with further regulatory changes expected from 2027 onwards, Honda aims to establish a robust development framework and deliver a highly competitive PU by transitioning to the new structure at an early stage."

Honda introduced its first engine upgrade of the campaign at the Dutch Grand Prix.

But although head of trackside general manager Shintaro Orihara said Honda had "observed (a) step forward in terms of performance on our metrics", the step is said to have been small, and less than Aston Martin had expected.

The lack of performance of the Honda engine is said to be worth at least a second of lap time, adding up the losses from the performance of the internal combustion engine and the operation of the electrical system.

F1 engines in 2026 have a near 50-50 split between internal combustion and electrical power, and efficiency in energy recovery is paramount when the batteries are almost completely deploying and recharging several times a lap.

Alonso was 2.2 seconds off the fastest time of the session when he was eliminated in the first part of qualifying at last weekend's Spanish Grand Prix.

Honda's stuttering start to its official return to F1 is rooted in its tortuous route to the start of this season.

In October 2020, it announced that it was pulling out of F1 at the end of 2021.

Although Honda continued to supply engines to Red Bull on a more low-key basis until the end of 2025, only a small hub of engineers remained on the programme. The others were sent off to work in other parts of the company.

They remained competitive because development was frozen as part of the F1 rules from 2021-25.

When Honda decided in May 2023 to return to F1 in an official capacity for 2026, it set about rebuilding a team of development engineers, but did not bring back the ones who had produced the successful 2021 engine.

Instead, engineers with no experience of F1 were brought into the programme.

This season, it has started the process of bringing back the experienced engineers in the hope the programme can be accelerated.

For Alonso, this process has been especially painful, because he has already endured three difficult years of uncompetitive Honda engines with McLaren from 2015-17, when the company last returned to F1 after a hiatus.

This latest development comes as the veteran two-time champion has still not confirmed whether he will continue in F1 after the end of this season, when he is out of contract with Aston Martin.