With 2026 pre-season testing scheduled to begin on January 26th, this year’s winter break is shorter than ever. Teams and drivers have very little time to recuperate before beginning work on next season.

One of the teams to watch is Aston Martin, who will begin a new era with Honda power next season. Despite the focus on Mercedes engines, there is a growing sense that the Japanese manufacturer could be very competitive in 2026.

New reports about Aston Martin’s winter schedule continue to suggest Honda are in a healthy position.

Fernando Alonso driving the (14) Aston Martin F1 Team AMR25. (Photo by Sam Bagnall/Sutton Images)
Aston Martin could debut 2026 F1 car within next month

With private testing in modern F1 so restricted, teams have very little time to collect data outside of race weekends. Wind tunnels and simulators might be increasingly sophisticated tools, but nothing fully replaces track time.

Because of this, the 200km teams are allocated per year for ‘filming days’ are vital. This mileage, though limited, gives engineers a chance to put their cars through the paces outside of official sessions.

As written previously on LWOS, Audi are expected to use some of their allocated kilometres for ‘filming days’ at the start of the year.

This should give the German manufacturer a chance to do basic checks, particularly with their engine. Some degree of correlation between the data produced at the circuit and the numbers from the factory will also be useful.

According to it.motorsport, however, Audi are not the only team with this plan. Aston Martin are said to also be targeting a private test in early January, a few weeks before pre-season testing.

Much like their German counterparts, Aston Martin are also debuting a brand new engine. Honda, who ae understood to have met their internal targets for 2026, will power the British team in 2026.

Whilst Honda’s time powering Red Bull gives them plenty of winning experience, integrating to a new team at the beginning of a regulation set is still a great challenge.

Therefore, a private test at the beginning of the year could help ease this adaptation period. Of course, this early running will only be possible if the team are confident enough in the car’s reliability to debut it slightly before official testing.

In the case of Honda and Aston, there is understood to be a cautious optimism about their 2026 challenger. Certainly, there is sufficient confidence to conduct a shakedown within the next month.

Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin F1 Team drive in the garage. (Photo by Zak Mauger/LAT Images)
Ensuring a smooth transition

It is important not to overanalyse reports during the winter break – even if they are the only sources of information about the 2026 development race.

For Aston Martin and Honda, it is true the information surrounding their project has been positive in recent weeks. There certainly aren’t any expectations of a catastrophic start as experienced when Honda joined forces with McLaren in 2025.

Instead, the question is whether the factory in Sakura has delivered enough to fight at the front.

Of course, performance – particularly on the engine front – will evolve throughout next season. This means that changes to the pecking order are inevitable over the next twelve months.

Still, Honda are targeting an engine with sufficient power, electric efficiency and reliability to give them a platform to build upon. The level of investment in this project has been so high that any major problems would deal a major blow to morale.

This is not to say Honda are not capable of recovering from setbacks. Their resurrection between 2015 and 2021 was hugely impressive – especially since they were pressured by McLaren into debuting their engine earlier than they felt ready for.

With that said, a strong starting position will significantly increase Aston Martin’s chances of realising their ambitions of becoming contenders in 2026.

For now, the whispers around Honda’s engine suggest the Japanese brand will not be a limiting factor in this endeavour.

READ MORE: How Williams unlocked a head start on their 2026 development

Main photo: Sam Bloxham/LAT Images (Aston Martin F1 Media Portal)