F1 News
Honda targetting qualifying mode in catch-up bid
- Jake Williams-Smith
Honda will be targetting an introduction of a qualifying power mode as the Japanese manufacturer looks to catch up to the pace-setting Mercedes and Ferrari power units.
Mercedes has been the class of the field since the introduction of the hybrid power unit in 2014, while Ferrari has caught up to its rival and challenged for titles in more recent seasons.
Honda has endured a more difficult time of things, their rekindled partnership with McLaren resulted in embarrassing performances and led to a messy 'divorce' between the two.
Now though, with Red Bull spearheading the charge on track, the Japanese manufacturer looks to be on the right path and Honda technical director Toyoharu Tanabe says an introduction of a qualifying mode is amongst its top priorities.
“We try to use our engine as hard as we can,” Tanabe told Motorsport.com.
“It’s not easy to make it higher immediately. But we keep developing, maybe in the next spec or update. But not the next race!
“So it means the next step we need to catch up is a qualifying mode or something, but it’s not easy.”