Toyoharu Tanabe was uncomfortable when he took to the podium for the first time two years ago. According to Tanabe the victory of Max Verstappen was a huge encouragement to the whole team.

The gesture of Verstappen

Tanabe says in conversation with The Telegraph that in Austria in 2019, the FIA did not immediately realise that he was allowed to join them on the podium. "They asked me to stay there and wait, because they didn't realise that I was the one who was allowed on the podium. Much later they only understood why I was there."

"A very emotional moment. I totally didn't expect it to happen," says Tanabe about the first Honda victory in the hybrid era. Tanabe thinks back to what Verstappen did after his victory on the podium. Namely, the Dutchman pointed his fingers at the Honda logo on his race suit. "That felt like a huge encouragement. For all the employees of Honda, for the whole team. A wonderful gesture from Max."

End of Honda in F1

For a long time, the partnership between Honda and Red Bull was not to last. Honda became the Austrian team's engine supplier in 2019, but after 2021 the Japanese engine manufacturer is already leaving Formula 1.