Could Honda, McLaren, and Toro Rosso form a three-way partnership?

Honda could supply engines to a second team as early as next season, with Toro Rosso apparently being its preferred partner. Although McLaren was initially reluctant, this decision could ultimately work in its favor.

Honda's next big initiative may not come from the garage, but rather from the boardroom, as the Japanese manufacturer considers a new partnership to accelerate its return to the elite of the sport. After a turbulent comeback marked by mediocre performances and reliability issues in 2015, the company has shown signs of progress this season, notably with Fernando Alonso's surprising sixth place finish in Sochi. However, the podium finish achieved by the Spanish veteran against better-equipped rivals highlights how far Honda still has to go to regain the dominance it enjoyed in the 1980s. The company's current development strategy seems to go beyond its exclusive partnership with McLaren, which Ron Dennis had established in order to preserve the confidentiality of Honda's technology. While McLaren has benefited from this partnership, the pace of improvement has not met the British team's expectations. In response, Honda is reportedly in talks with Toro Rosso to supply engines for the coming seasons, a move that could give the Japanese manufacturer a larger testing ground and more data to perfect its units.

Toro Rosso is an interesting option. As Red Bull's sister team, it is close to the multiple world champion team, but operates on a more modest budget that allows it to conduct experimental developments without the pressure of having to directly challenge Red Bull's dominance. A collaboration could be inspired by Renault's past approach, where the French engine supplier remained linked to Red Bull while changing its name to distance itself from previous criticism, thus preserving a key presence on the grid and accelerating its own progress.

If Honda follows this path, the partnership would not only broaden its experience, but also create benchmarks that could accelerate its return to the top in terms of performance. For a manufacturer still haunted by the reliability disasters of 2015, partnering with a team like Toro Rosso could be the catalyst needed to transform incremental gains into true competitiveness on the world stage.