Sauber F1 Team to Run Honda Engines in 2018

In a surprise move not even halfway through the 2017 Formula One season, Sauber announces a new engine partner for the 2018 campaign.

The news surrounding Honda in Formula One of late has been quite the mixed bag. While the on-track performance has led to discussions about their future with the McLaren team, Fernando Alonso will partner with one of their IndyCar teams to run in the Indy 500 in May. Well, throw this new story into that mixed bag too, as the Sauber F1 team confirms they will use Honda engine power starting with the 2018 season.

In the press release, Katsuhide Moriyama of the Honda Motor Company is quoted as saying:

"“In addition to the partnership with McLaren which began in 2015, Honda will begin supplying power units to Sauber as a customer team starting from next year. This will be a new challenge in Honda’s F1 activities. In order to leverage the benefits of supplying to two teams to the maximum extent, we will strengthen the systems and capabilities of both of our two development operations, namely HRD Sakura and the operation in Milton Keynes. We will continue our challenges so that our fans will enjoy seeing a Honda with dominant strength as soon as possible.”"

It is interesting to see Honda reach a deal with a second F1 team when they are struggling so mightily with one already. Conflicting reports suggest an internal battle between McLaren and Honda over the direction of engine development, hence the additional rumors of the team reuniting with Mercedes. However, it is possible that by adding a second team, Honda can do more research and development with their engine program.

At the same time, this appears to be a step forward still for Sauber. Having run year-old Ferrari engines the last two years, the deal with the Japanese auto brand is described as a technical and commercial partnership, something Sauber has been searching for since they came under new ownership in 2016. Interestingly, Honda now provides engines to the two teams with the smallest sponsorship bases in the Formula One paddock, something that both teams look to change with better performance in the coming years.

While the deal has been announced as a multi-year partnership, one has to wonder if there is an out for Sauber if their performance with the Honda engines proves to be worse than their current state. That would be hard to accomplish, however, considering their backmarker status in the last two to three years. All the comments coming from Honda scream of their optimism for improvement in 2018, but will these words finally come to fruition after years of work?

What do you think, Formula One fans? Are you excited to see Sauber switch to Honda engine power in 2018? Do you think it will help or hurt their performance? Beyond the Flag has you covered throughout the F1 campaign with all the latest news, rumors, and analysis.

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