Honda commits to F1 with Red Bull until at least 2021

©Honda

Honda will remain in Formula 1 with Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso until the end of the 2021 season, extending its partnership with both teams by a single year.

Honda's decision - the first commitment from an F1 engine supplier for 2020 - is a short-term measure taken as the Japanese company evaluates the costs of remaining longer term in the sport.

Honda F1 future dependent on costs of engine programme

After a failed partnership with McLaren, Honda switched its allegiance to Toro Rosso in 2018, the Faenza-based squad assuming the groundwork for Red Bull Racing's own switch to Honda power at the start of this year.

That partnership has yielded three wins so far this season, in Austria, Germany and Brazil, courtesy of Max Verstappen.

While those wins have decided Honda to extend its deal with Red Bull's teams until the end of 2021, a prolongation of its presence in F1 beyond that term will depend on its ability to reduce the costs of its engine programme while sustaining its quest for success.

Red Bull motorsport boss Helmut Marko described Honda's decision to remain in F1 as "a great relief for us".

Honda's decision implies that both Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso - or AlphaTauri as it will be called in 2020 - will commit to the sport's new Concorde Agreement which governs the teams' commercial and financial covenants with Liberty Media, F1's rights holder.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.