The labours of Honda
Both McLaren drivers retired because of engine problems: an ERS cooling issue for Alonso and a turbo problem for Jenson, whom I worked with at the Honda F1 Racing Team when I was responsible for the development team based in Japan in 2006 and 2007.
Having worked with Honda at Brackley as well as at their research center at Sakura where their racing department is located, I can say that their motivation is massive: they are racing to win, not just to make up the numbers.
Honda is impassioned with racing and they have the resources to fulfill their ambitions, but they'll need time...
They deploy the necessary resources in order to succeed, and they usually do. The reason they failed the last time they were in F1 was because of bad timing: in 2009, their chassis won, with Brawn, but it was powered by a Mercedes engine. Honda's true power is that they never give up. After a fairly disastrous beginning back in 1983 with Spirit, their turbo engine became a true reference and garnered many victories, first with Williams and then with McLaren. In the not so distant future, their V6 hybrid power unit will become one of the best out there, but it will take some time.
Jacky Eeckelaert was talking to Nicolas Carpentiers
