McLaren confirms switch to Renault from Honda

McLaren has confirmed it has ended its relationship with Honda and will use Renault power units in 2018.

Following months of speculation, the split was officially announced following the end of FP1 at the Singapore Grand Prix, with McLaren signing a three-year deal with Renault that will take it through to the end of the current power unit formula at the end of 2020.

"Today's announcement gives us the stability we need to move ahead with our chassis and technical program for 2018 without any further hesitation," McLaren executive director Zak Brown said.

"As an organization, McLaren has always worked extremely hard to form lasting partnerships with its technical suppliers. We're convinced that we can bring real value to Renault Sport Racing as we work alongside it to develop this current power unit into a regular race winner."

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Brown was also keen to pay tribute to Honda despite the premature end of its contract with the Japanese manufacturer.

"There has never been any doubt over Honda's commitment and energy to the mission of success in Formula 1," Brown said. "They are proven winners and innovators. For a combination of reasons our partnership has not flourished as any of us would have wished.

"It is certainly not for the want of effort on the part of either Honda or McLaren, but the time has come to move ahead in different directions. As fellow racers, we hope to see the great name of Honda get back to the top – our sport is better for their involvement. I know this view is shared by everyone in the sport."

Renault president Jerome Stoll says partnering with McLaren will bring additional competition for the works team as well as off-track benefits.

"This is a strategic decision for Renault Sport Racing," Stoll says. "It is the first time that Renault will work with McLaren and we are proud to have reached an agreement with an organization that has such a rich Formula 1 history. This alliance is not only technical and sporting, but also comes with marketing and communication benefits. We know that McLaren will push us hard on track and this competition will be to the benefit of all."

Cyril Abiteboul added that McLaren will be a benchmark for Renault to try and match in terms of chassis development as it aims to have a winning works team in three years' time.

"We are pleased to confirm a new partnership for Renault Sport Racing and McLaren Racing and excited to embark on this new relationship of these two historic brands in Formula 1 cooperating together for the first time," the Renault managing director said. "This agreement is perfectly in line with our mid-term strategy and with our objective to be in a winning position as a team in 2020.

"We are looking forward to seeing the Renault brand on next year's McLaren and racing our new partners on track. McLaren is an inspirational team with two talented drivers which should not only support our engine development efforts but also act as a reference and an example in the ongoing construction of our chassis operations. This is an exciting new beginning with a championship-winning team that is hungry to return to glory."