Honda chief to face F1 media over Aston Martin nightmare

Photo: © IMAGO

Aston Martin

Honda chief to face F1 media over Aston Martin nightmare

The Japanese Grand Prix is Honda's home race

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Wednesday 25 March 2026 17:42 Updated: 14:01

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Honda F1 chief Koji Watanabe will face the music at the Japanese Grand Prix on Friday where he will delve deeper into Aston Martin's woes.

Aston Martin are yet to complete a full race distance in 2026, with both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll retiring from the opening two rounds in Australia and in China.

Their main problem is the vibrations emitting from the Honda power unit which, if withstood for an entire grand prix distance, could cause permanent nerve damage, according to the team's drivers. Alonso's discomfort was never so evident as it was in Shanghai, where he had to lift his hands off the steering wheel on occasion as the vibrations became overpowering.

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Aston Martin team principal Adrian Newey has been vocal in the media about the discord between the car and the Honda PU, claiming Honda started on the 'back foot' after withdrawing and then re-entering F1.

Honda will address media in Japan

Honda too have been keeping fans abreast with their view on Aston Martin's woes with their post-race press releases, where they have vowed they will do all in their power to solve the issues with their power unit.

But the head of Honda's racing corporation Koji Watanabe, will be on hand at the Japanese Grand Prix to voice their perspective on their nightmare 2026 season.

Watanabe will take part in the team principal's press conference on Friday, March 27 at 13:30 local time (JST), which is 04:30 GMT. He will appear alongside McLaren team principal Andrea Stella and Haas boss Ayao Komatsu.

For the full press conference schedule in Japan, including the drivers', post-qualifying and post-race qualifying session, see below.

Japanese GP FIA Press Conferences Schedule
Date	Time	Driver/Team Member	Session
Thursday 26 March	12:30	Franco Colapinto (Alpine), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)	Drivers’ Press Conference
Thursday 26 March	13:00	Oliver Bearman (Haas), Lando Norris (McLaren), Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)	Drivers’ Press Conference
Friday 27 March	13:30	Ayao Komatsu (Haas), Koji Watanabe (Honda), Andrea Stella (McLaren)	Team Principals Press Conference
Saturday 27 March	Post-Qualifying	Top three fastest drivers	Post-Qualifying Press Conference
Sunday 28 March	Post-Race	First three finishing drivers	Post-Race Press Conference