Vettel expects ‘very brave’ Honda to succeed

Sebastian Vettel says Honda has been “very brave” in entering F1 a year after new regulations were introduced but expects the engine manufacturer to succeed.

Honda is only supplying McLaren with its new power unit in 2015, and a number of problems disrupted its pre-season testing schedule before the car ran comfortably off the pace in Australia. With Kevin Magnussen failing to even start the race after an engine problem - and Daniil Kvyat also stopping on the way to the grid - Vettel says the reliability issues are not good for the sport but also highlight what a good job teams are doing to run consistently with the current technology.

”Obviously it was strange to see people struggling to do the laps to the grid but I think it’s difficult,” Vettel said. “I think it shows how complex it really is, how difficult it is to master the challenge of making the car reliable for a grand prix and for the entire season so that’s why you really have to say chapeau to [Mercedes] and everyone who is able to extract clean races.

“But also it’s great to see that this year we have a new competitor in the game with Honda. I think they have been very brave to face that challenge, even though now the price they’re paying is very high, but I’m sure they will come back.

“I think everyone has, more or less, been through that process with the exception of [Mercedes] last year, so it seems to be part of the game but for sure it’s not great for the people. They want to see the cars and if the cars break before even starting the race that’s not right but what can I say? It’s a difficult challenge, it is complicated, maybe got a bit too complicated but for now it is what it is.”

Click here to learn about a key Mercedes power unit change in 2015

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.

Recent Posts

Sad Colapinto laments two crashes in one day in Sao Paulo

Williams suffered a bruising time on Sunday in Sao Paulo, with Alex Albon unable to…

1 hour ago

McLaren: No regrets over timing of Norris pit stop in Sao Paulo GP

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has insisted that the squad has no regrets about their…

3 hours ago

Williams' Boutsen hoists the mainsail in Adelaide

On this day in 1989, Williams' Thierry Boutsen secured his second F1 win when he…

4 hours ago

Horner: Max 'answered critics' with epic Sao Paulo GP drive

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner hailed Max Verstappen’s sensational Sao Paulo Grand Prix victory…

5 hours ago

Sainz left puzzled by double crash drama in rainy São Paulo

Carlos Sainz was left scratching his head after a disastrous Sunday at the Sao Paulo…

6 hours ago

Alonso pushed through agonizing pain to complete Sao Paulo GP

Fernando Alonso braved both physical agony and mechanical challenges in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix,…

7 hours ago