Honda says that there was nothing in its data to suggest that Fernando Alonso suffered a power unit problem during the Belgian Grand Prix.
Alonso surged up to seventh on the opening lap but gradually slipped down the order, his efforts hampered by a lack of straight-line speed.
Alonso, once running outside of the top 10, radioed McLaren to ask whether any rain was on the way, only to be told that dry conditions should prevail.
The following lap Alonso reported an engine failure and coasted back to the pits before retiring.
Honda chief Yusuke Hasegawa, though, said the manufacturer’s data did not indicate there was any issue.
“After starting brilliantly, Fernando then had a tough race overall,” said Hasegawa.
“He radioed in with what he thought was a problem with the car, and although there was nothing showing in the data, we decided to stop the car as a precaution.
“This weekend was definitely a bag of mixed fortunes.
“We were able to show some decent pace in qualifying, but we still have work to do with our race pace, and we will continue to accelerate our development in order to improve our PU further.”
Stoffel Vandoorne started from the back amid a 65-place penalty and came home in 14th spot.
