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Guenther Steiner has launched a scathing assessment of Aston Martin and Honda's 2025 performance, describing their back-of-grid struggles as unacceptable for Formula 1 standards. The former Haas team principal singled out Honda's power unit as the primary culprit preventing Aston Martin from competing at a level expected of a team with Adrian Newey and Lawrence Stroll's considerable financial backing. The Silverstone-based squad managed just one point in Monaco but remains firmly anchored at the rear of the field alongside Cadillac, a situation Steiner believes falls short of what F1 demands from its competitors.
Cadillac comparison highlights the problem
Steiner drew a stark comparison between Aston Martin and fellow strugglers Cadillac to illustrate the scale of the problem. "With Aston Martin, Cadillac even looks good, and Cadillac was three laps down at the end of the race," he said in The Red Flags Podcast. "What Aston Martin is doing now is, in my opinion, simply unacceptable. That no longer meets F1 standards. You finish last, with a huge deficit, and then you still run the whole race."
The criticism cuts deep for a team that has invested heavily in infrastructure, personnel, and now Newey's design genius. Aston Martin has oscillated between midfield competitiveness in recent seasons and outright mediocrity, but 2025 represents a serious low point. Steiner believes owner Lawrence Stroll cannot be satisfied with the current trajectory. "I don't think Lawrence Stroll is proud of what's happening there. But he is ultimately responsible. He is the owner of the team."
Domenicali's hands tied
Steiner also addressed whether Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali could intervene to address Aston Martin's decline. The answer, he suggested, is no. "Stefano has no authority to determine when they should or shouldn't intervene, what they do, or how they perform. Unfortunately for him, and in Formula 1 there is no relegation rule in the regulations; in most other sports, if you don't perform, you simply get relegated."
Relegation, Steiner argued, would be the most effective remedy for both Aston Martin and Honda. He dismissed the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) concessions available to struggling teams as insufficient to close the gap. "It's not due to a lack of commitment from Lawrence Stroll; there are few people who put as much of their own money into Formula 1 as Lawrence has done. I think they need more than ADUO."
Honda's Formula 2 trajectory
Steiner reserved particular scorn for Honda's power unit performance, suggesting the Japanese manufacturer's struggles warrant drastic action. "I think Honda will benefit a lot from ADUO because they are performing so poorly. It will certainly help them, because if Honda stays where they are, they should go to Formula 2."
The comment reflects a broader frustration with a partnership that was supposed to propel Aston Martin forward after the team's switch from Mercedes power. Instead, the combination of Honda's underperforming engine and Aston Martin's chassis issues has left the team struggling for relevance. Steiner's blunt assessment underscores the reputational and competitive stakes for both parties, particularly as rivals continue to extract more performance from their respective packages. Whether ADUO concessions prove sufficient or whether more fundamental changes are required remains the defining question of Aston Martin's season
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