Honda’s motorsport boss Masashi Yamamoto says the engine manufacturer’s initial aim for its partnership with Red Bull will be to prevent the team from dropping “below its current level”.

Red Bull announced on Tuesday it would end its 12-year association with Renault to switch to Honda power for 2019 on a multi-year agreement, in light of the Japanese company’s improved performances under junior team Toro Rosso.

Despite failing to add to its four world championships since the beginning of the V6 hybrid era in 2014, the Milton Keynes-based outfit remains a competitive front-running package, winning 10 grand prix’s over the last four years.

With this in mind, Honda wants to ensure Red Bull does not lose its competitive edge under its reign before switching focus to separate goals.

“[Red Bull] is one of the top teams,” said Yamamoto. “It has won several championships and this year too it has already won some races [two from the first seven GPs].

“It is also obvious that they have a very good chassis and this means we’ll have better chances of winning races.

“This gives further motivation to all the members of Honda, but at the same time, it is a huge pressure and responsibility for us.

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“However, it is Honda’s nature to always aspire to a very high target, and I think that’s what makes Honda, Honda.

“As a starting point, we do not want to see Red Bull Racing’s performance drop below its current level. But our target is to go further and do better than they are doing at the moment.”

Honda is aware it is against time to prepare for its new partnership as teams look towards the new aerodynamic regulations for 2019.

“I think now all other teams have already started the development for 2019 so we will also have to start work on the matching of the chassis and the power unit with the team,” added Yamamoto.

“Though we have more time compared to last year’s Toro Rosso situation, it is still a relatively shorter timeframe than everyone else.

“So, we have to make sure we have good communication in order to have smooth development together.”