Verstappen gives Honda wings: ''This is a huge motivation''

Red Bull Racing and Honda have their first victory in 2020 in their pocket. Max Verstappen was able to win the second Grand Prix at Silverstone and thus creates a lot of motivation among the Japanese engine manufactours.

''The Honda engine worked without any problems during the race and was an important part of the victory. It's about the team, the driver and the engine. You saw that in the race. On Saturday we may have been a bit behind, but we were very good in the race," says Toyoharu Tanabe to Auto Sport Web.

Honda's technical boss sees the gap to Mercedes, but continues to work hard with his team to close the gap. ''You see that Mercedes is strong on Saturday and Sunday. Not only the car, but also the drivers and the team itself. Everyone does their job well and takes the results. You don't just break that.''

However, a victory for Verstappen can give just that extra push to Red Bull and Honda. ''Of course there's still a difference between the teams, but it's great to see that we can handle the battle. With such a short calendar it's very difficult to make progress and once you start winning others can hardly stop it. Winning is therefore a huge motivation for Red Bull and Honda'', concludes Tanabe.