Fernando Alonso and Co. Get Massive Head Start on 2026 Engine Because of One Sponsor

“The longest contract I have ever signed”, said Fernando Alonso as he re-signed with Aston Martin. But why not move to Red Bull or Mercedes with the driver market in a great dynamic state? Has Alonso given up on the third title dream? Not really. It is because of the future, especially the 2026 regulations, where Aston Martin’s Title sponsor has given them a massive head start.

When Lawrence Stroll renamed the Force India/Racing Point team to Aston Martin, he brought forward his 5 year vision for the team, where he wanted the team to challenge for the title and win it at the end of the 5th year. As a result, the Canadian Billionaire invested millions. But that is not all and Aston Martin continues to make strides.

Earlier this year, Aston Martin announced Aramco as its title sponsor. Aramco is an oil company, just like Petronas and Shell. With the new regulations coming in, the dependency on the Internal combustion engine [ICE] is believed to decrease as 50% of the power will be supplied by the batteries. However, the ERS isn’t capable of charging the battery back fully throughout a lap, and hence it is expected that the engine will also act as a generator at times to recharge the battery. 

This makes the role of the ICE super dynamic. And with the fuel loads set to decrease for 2026, the energy production capacity of the fuel becomes even more crucial. The cherry on top is that the fuels are supposed to be 100% synthetic i.e. no fossil fuel. According to AMuS, Aramco has a slight advantage and head start regarding the 2026 fuels. FIA did the first tests of the new fuel in partnership with Aramco, who are believed to have a better understanding of what 2026 will require. 

But that isn’t all. Aston Martin has also signed Honda as their exclusive engine supplier. A little throwback to 2014, and we shall recall how the new regulations Mercedes and Petronas were a deadly combination and continued to dominate for 8 years. AMR will expect the same from Honda and Aramco. 

Honda Impressed by Lawrence Stroll’s World Champion Vision for Aston Martin

Honda wanted out of Formula 1 and told Red Bull the same. For this very reason, Red Bull started its own engine division called RBPT, Red Bull Powertrains. However, the enticing 2026 regulations with increased power from batteries intrigued Honda, and they decided they would make a comeback. Although they could’ve stayed with Red Bull, they opted for Aston Martin and Koji Watanabe explains why.

Koji Watanabe, President of the Honda Racing Corporation said, “Honda was very impressed with Mr Stroll’s strong passion and his strong leadership to fight for the world championship in 2026. They invest a lot of money to establish the factory in Silverstone. We visited them to see the factory that was under construction. Several times we have meetings with Martin Whitmarsh and Mike Krack, so the management team. They are very open and the entire team is working in the same direction, it’s one united team. That is a very good image for us.”

Do you think Aston Martin will be able to let go of its midfield status and become a World Champion? It looks like they have all the tools for it. Just a case of putting them together.