Honda’s American racing arm is folding into the automaker’s larger global racing program. This creates new opportunities for collaboration, potentially even on future road-going performance cars.
Since 1993, Honda Performance Development has existed as a relatively independent arm of American Honda meant primarily to support U.S.-based racing endeavors like the IndyCar V-6 and the Acura ARX-06 prototype. That is officially changing next year, when HPD is folded into the larger Honda Racing Corporation structure and re-born as Honda Racing Corporation USA. The arrangement will lead to a substantial uptick in collaboration between the American and Japanese racing arms of the company.
The restructure ends a long divide in how Honda has managed its racing operations. Previously, HPD has handled American operations like IndyCar and off-road racing while HRC has dealt with global racing, like MotoGP. The two have added operations that are relevant to one another in recent years, with HRC branding joining Formula 1 after Honda dropped its traditional engine program in 2021 and HPD building the Acura ARX-06, a race car that can run at the top class of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. With this new structure, both projects would now fall under some portion of Honda Racing Corporation.
That opens up an exciting potential for further crossover between American, European, and Japanese racing. What that collaboration will look like in process is another story entirely. The ARX-06’s readiness for global racing makes a World Endurance Championship and 24 Hours of Le Mans campaign an obvious opportunity, but that remains a distant goal; David Salters, President of the soon-to-be HRC US, says that the car will not race in the WEC next season and any future plans to run the car in Europe are still under evaluation.
Whether or not this new structure leads to any new racing programs, it should provide a benefit to those the group has already announced. Next season, the company’s entries in both IndyCar and IMSA will use a turbocharged V-6 paired to a hybrid system. While that is relatively new territory for the former HPD, HRC has already operated in that space with its hybrid motor in F1. Not only will that help HRC US in its domestic racing operations, it will allow HRC to continue experimenting with how batteries and gasoline power interact before its planned return to F1 in partnership with Aston Martin come 2026.
While this is primarily a motorsports decision, it also factors into HPD’s current presence in the American Honda lineup with packages available on the Ridgeline. HRC input on road cars could follow, and HRC Japan President Koji Watanabe notes that the HRC is “examining what kind of model we would like to develop for mass production going forward.” For now, HPD branding will continue on the Ridgeline for the foreseeable future to capitalize on brand recognition.
One immediate consequence of the deal will be a branding change to reflect the new name. HRC US logos will debut on the defending champion ARX-06 in January’s 2024 Rolex 24 at Daytona before appearing on other projects, like the first-ever hybrid IndyCars, as the 2024 racing season continues on.
Source: Road and Track
