F1 Considering Rule Change to Help Honda Amid Struggles

Formula 1 is reportedly considering a rule change to the engine regulations to help Honda’s power unit, which is well below the rest of the field’s threshold.

Aston Martin made the bold move to sign up with Honda, which has powered F1 title contenders at Red Bull for several years.

Before their success at Red Bull, Honda failed to make a great impression, going through reliability issues and a performance gap. Still, with the help of the energy-drink racing team, the engine manufacturer found its footing.

However, Red Bull decided to go all in on building their own power unit in-house, partnering with Ford, while Honda was seemingly left on the outside of the sport.

Oct 19, 2025; Austin, TX, USA; Aston Martin Armco F1 Team driver Lance Stroll (18) of Team Canada out of turn 22 at Circuit of The Americas Austin. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

Aston Martin, which was previously powered by Mercedes, decided to move away from being a customer team and form an exclusive partnership with Honda, making it the only car powered by the Japanese car company’s F1 engine.

2026 is a year when a completely new engine formula enters the sport, and Honda has gotten the new power unit totally wrong, with a serious vibration problem that is preventing drivers from finishing races.

Even when it does hold up enough to compete, it is the worst engine on the grid. As a result, according to Jon Noble of The Race, the rival manufacturers are considering making changes to help Honda’s power units.

“It seems for me there’s one engine manufacturer that has a problem, and we need to help,” Mercedes CEO Toto Wolff said. “But then all the others are pretty much in the same ballpark.”

The changes would be to the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) rules. This would unlock additional development time and opportunities just for Honda, giving them time to figure out what is really happening with their engine.