Williams is not considering a tie-up with Honda when the new set of Power Unit regulations come into play in 2026.
Honda has confirmed its interest in returning to the sport in three years’ time by signing up to the new cycle of engine regulations.
It is one of six parties signed up to the FIA’s process, with Red Bull-Ford, Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine and Audi also engaged in talks.
Williams has been in partnership with Mercedes since the 2014 campaign, when the turbo-hybrid units were first introduced.
Speaking to media in Jeddah, Williams team boss James Vowles asserted that the Grove-based squad is not committed to Mercedes beyond the 2025 season.
“We are at the moment in the process of making sure we understand all of the options available to this team,” Vowles said.
“We’re not locked into Mercedes and we’re still in the process of reviewing.
“But we have to, as all teams will do as well, come to a decision very shortly.”
When pushed on when such a decision will be made, Vowles stated that it would be “a little bit before” the end of the year.
Honda re-joined F1 in 2015 but endured a difficult number of seasons with McLaren, before opting to join the Red Bull family – first with Toro Rosso in 2018 and then with Red Bull itself from 2019.
A decision was taken to exit F1 at the end of the 2021 season, before it enjoyed championship success with Red Bull through Max Verstappen’s F1 title.
With new senior figures present at Honda since its 2021 departure, there exists a chance that the Japanese manufacturer could be back on the grid come the 2026 campaign.
However, a partnership with Williams is not likely, according to Vowles.
“It would be hard for me to comment because I’m not sure what they have facility-wise,” he said, when asked if Honda was a credible option for its new supplier.
“But I think they’re a little bit further away from it than they would need to be for it to be a serious contender for that year.”
Honda has stated that there are multiple teams that have reached out to it over penning a deal for 2026 and beyond.
