Honda only started working on new engine in October: "Worked three times as fast".

Head of Honda's research and development team Yasuaki Asaki has explained why this choice was made.

"We have been working for the last few years to see where the limits of the old engine were," Asaki said in conversation with Formula1.com.

"But it was only in October that we started to put everything into the development of the new engine."

Mercedes couldn't be beaten with old power unit

They still had to convince Red Bull Racing that this was possible in such a short time. "We explained that we would not be able to beat Mercedes with the old power unit, and that we would need a new one to do so. So in order to win we had to implement the new power unit, and so we started working on that at the time."

In doing so, they received help from other departments within the company, including Honda Jet, which builds aircraft engines.

"With the help of Honda Motor we were able to produce certain parts three times faster than normal, and so we had the new engines ready for the first race. If all goes well we think we can contribute in Red Bull's performance, and so it is a sign of the almost miraculous technological achievement we have achieved," Asaki said.