Tag: Formula One

Honda To Quit Formula 1 At The End Of 2021 Season

Honda made the surprise announcement of its withdrawal from the Formula 1 championship as an engine supplier at the end of the 2021 season during a press conference in Tokyo this morning.

The Japanese carmaker is instead going to focus on the research and development of fuel-cell and EV technologies as part of their plan to realize carbon neutrality by 2050.

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“Honda needs to funnel its corporate resources in research and development into the areas of future power unit and energy technologies, including fuel cell vehicle (FCV) and battery EV (BEV) technologies, which will be the core of carbon-free technologies,” the company said in a statement.

Honda will quit Formula 1 at the end of 2021, which is the final year of the motorsport’s current technical regulations.

It’s currently unclear which engine supplier is going to replace Honda at Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Alpha Tauri, leaving both teams with just three options: Mercedes-AMG, Ferrari, and Renault. However, both Mercedes and Ferrari are unlikely to strike a deal with Red Bull and Alpha Tauri, with Renault currently being the most probable supplier for the two teams.

“As a Team we understand how difficult it has been for Honda Motor Company to reach the decision to step back from Formula One at the end of the 2021 season,” said Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner. “Whilst we are disappointed not to continue our partnership with Honda, we are enormously proud of our joint success, delivering five wins and 15 podiums for both Red Bull-owned teams and we thank everyone at Honda for their extraordinary efforts and commitment.”

Honda returned to Formula 1 in 2015 with McLaren as an engine supplier. The combination wasn’t successful and their partnership ended after three race seasons, with Honda then supplying Alpha Tauri for a year before striking a deal with Red Bull as well.

McLaren Aims To Cut 1,200 Jobs After Being “Severely Affected” By The Coronavirus Pandemic

The latest victim of the coronavirus is McLaren as the company has proposed a restructuring plan designed to ensure its “long-term future success.”

In a note to investors, the company said “McLaren has been severely affected by the current pandemic. The cancellation of motorsport events, the suspension of manufacturing and retail activities around the world, and reduced demand for technology solutions have all led to a sudden impact on the Group’s revenue generating activities.”

If that wasn’t bad enough, the company is also facing the new Formula 1 cost cap which is slated to be introduced for the 2021 season. Given all of this, McLaren is looking to make cuts across its automotive, motorsport and technology divisions.

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As part of this effort, the company has proposed eliminating around 1,200 jobs. The cuts will target so-called redundancies and come from all three business sectors as well as from their “support and back office functions.”

The company has worked hard to avoid these cuts and McLaren noted they have already “undertaken dramatic cost-saving measures across all areas of the business” and refocused McLaren Applied to prioritize “proven, high-growth revenue streams.”

Despite these efforts, it simply wasn’t enough. As McLaren Group Executive Chairman Paul Walsh explained, “We now have no other choice but to reduce the size of our workforce.” He added, “We deeply regret the impact that this restructure will have on all our people, but especially those whose jobs may be affected.”

Thankfully, it’s not all bad news as McLaren noted 765LT deliveries are slated to begin in October and will be followed by the Elva later this year. The company also confirmed their new hybrid architecture will go into production late this year with the first deliveries scheduled for 2021.