The Japanese manufacturer, which owns the Suzuka circuit where the race is held, left the series because it felt it could not continue during the commercial challenges posed by the shift towards electrification in road cars.
Subsequently, it reached an agreement with the Red Bull and AlphaTauri teams that they would continue to use Honda engines, although they would be renamed under the new Red Bull Powertrains division.
However, there was a change to the original plan for Red Bull to take over maintenance and production of the engines at Milton Keynes ; and instead Honda agreed to continue working from its Japanese facilities.
As part of that deal, the logo of its motorsports division, Honda Racing Corporation , continues to appear on Red Bulls.
Honda still maintains high interest in F1 and, having won the drivers’ title last year with Max Verstappen, the company has opted to secure itself a good deal of prominence at this year’s Japanese GP.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, they revealed the following: “Honda Motor Co., Ltd. announced today that it has been confirmed as the title sponsor of the Japanese Grand Prix in this season’s 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship.”
“The Japanese Grand Prix will be held at Suzuka Circuit, from October 7-9, 2022. The official title of this year’s F1 Japanese Grand Prix will be FORMULA 1 HONDA JAPAN GRAND PRIX 2022.”
Honda’s presence at the Japanese GP is evidence that the Japanese manufacturer retains a key interest in the series, and it has long been suspected that the company could return to F1 in the future.
Speaking earlier this year, Honda’s former Formula 1 boss Masashi Yamamoto was of the opinion that they had left the series too soon.
“Personally yes, I agree,” Yamamoto said. “But this is obviously a company decision and I understand where the company wants to go, so in the end we have to accept that.”
“But we hope that one day Honda will return to F1.”
