Honda 2026 F1 launch: Aston Martin begin new era

Aston Martin F1 team have officially begun their new era, with Honda unveiling their new power unit.

Honda are teaming up with Aston Martin from next season onwards, following the end of their partnership with Red Bull, in which they managed to win two constructors' titles and four drivers' championships as a power unit manufacturer.

The Japanese car brand will be hoping to repeat that success with Aston Martin, who are seemingly on the up having brought in design legend Adrian Newey - who is now their team principal - as well as former Ferrari star Enrico Cardile.

Aston Martin are hoping to one day become a championship-challenging team, and that journey begins with this new partnership, as well as new regulations that are sweeping into F1 which may provide them with an opportunity to make ground on their rivals.

Earlier this week, Honda unveiled their new power unit in a season launch event in Tokyo, where former Aston Martin team principal Andy Cowell was in attendance.

This event was separate from Aston Martin's official car launch event, which is set to take place on February 9, but the AMR26 was mentioned and it was confirmed Honda's classic 'H' logo will feature on the livery.

The new RA626H power unit was revealed to audiences as Honda and Aston Martin take their first steps together in the new partnership, although certain details of the engine were obscured to avoid rivals being able to see what the Japanese car manufacturers have done with certain parts of the power unit.

How to watch the Honda F1 power unit launch

While the event happened very early on Tuesday morning UK time, F1 fans may want to watch the ceremony to see what Cowell and Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll had to say on the new partnership.

Honda president Koji Watanabe also spoke in length about the new power unit regulations, as well as rumours of a potential loophole in the rules that has allegedly been found by Mercedes and Red Bull.

F1 fans can watch the ceremony back via the Honda Racing YouTube channel.

When are the other F1 teams unveiling their 2026 cars?

Below is the full list of the 11 teams' 2026 season launch events and how to watch them.

F1 HEADLINES: Mercedes submit Verstappen request as ‘diabolical’ team switch revealed

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Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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