Honda admits Aston Martin reliability has slipped back

Honda has acknowledged that its reliability has taken a step backwards, with Aston Martin suffering five retirements across the last three Formula 1 race weekends. Fernando Alonso finished in Brazil, but Lance Stroll retired, and Honda trackside chief Shintaro Orihara said the causes were not related to mileage or component demands, particularly batteries.

Orihara said Honda has yet to identify the root cause of Stroll's latest failure. He also admitted that wet conditions at Interlagos masked Honda's continuing power deficit, allowing Alonso to challenge faster cars despite finishing outside the points, while handling has become more important.

Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe was at Interlagos for talks with Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll and other senior team officials, as pressure grows on Honda to deliver major improvements in performance and reliability for 2027.