Honda sets a clear goal to stay in F1 after 2021: "Series Champion"

It's taken years, but since working with Red Bull, Honda has finally become an engine manufacturer at least on par with the competition. Now that party fashions have been abolished for next weekend, many think Honda can benefit even more. However, Masashi Yamamoto still sees Mercedes as a clear favorite.

“There are various factors we have to think about like downforce and drag, so it’s not simple", says Honda's man to Formula1.com. "But from GPS data, we think Mercedes well ahead of us, and second, third and fourth is really close. During the race, we’re a little bit in front of Renault and Ferrari but it is close.”

“We think the budget cap a good thing but we are 50-50 regarding how we feel about limiting the development time because we started development of our PU later than others", Yamamoto frankly admits.

Although aligning the financial resources and the competitiveness of the engine has also led to a positive attitude towards Formula 1 at the head office in Japan, Yamamoto is clear that more is needed to keep Honda in F1 after 2021: "Series Champion".