Honda: "We needed time to solve the problems that limited us"

Honda has made a huge step between the 2020 and 2021 Formula One seasons. The Red Bull Racing engine manufacturer says it owes its current success to past failures.

"We have learned a lot from our failures," says technical director Toyoharu Tanabe in an interview with BBC Sport. "We needed time to solve the problems that more or less limited us, and for this year we have made a big change."

The Japanese engine supplier is currently in its final year in Formula 1, and therefore wanted at all costs to deliver its best power source so far to the Red Bull team. To achieve this, Honda brought forward the power unit that was actually intended for 2022. "It was tight, but we did everything we could," says Tanabe.

According to Masahi Yamamoto, general manager at Honda F1, it was impossible to make the same progress earlier. "The engineers have gained so much experience through both failure and success. In the time we had, it was very difficult to get it done earlier," Yamamoto is referring to the relatively short time Honda supplied engines to Red Bull Racing.