Honda have been making big gains as of late with their F1 power unit and are now planning on introducing their second in-season upgrade at this weekend’s French Grand Prix.

Surprisingly enough, only four races have passed since their previous upgrade. However, that particular spec was introduced mainly for reliability purposes and didn’t offer any significant power boost. Spec 3, however, is focused on performance, and comes with a clear power increase.

The upgraded engine will find its way into both Red Bull cars this weekend, as well as one of the Toro Rossos (Daniil Kvyat’s car). Toro Rosso opted not to upgrade both cars in order to not have both drivers receive grid penalties.

According to Honda, this latest development is the result of a collaboration between its motorsport division and its Aero engine department, also known as Honda Jet.

“The changes to the previous specification are mainly around the ICE and the turbocharger,” said Honda F1 technical director Toyoharu Tanabe. “In this instance, our engineers at the Sakura, Japan R&D facility have worked closely with other departments within Honda, specifically the Aero engine development department.”

Also Read: Renault F1 Boss Says Red Bull Wouldn’t Be Where They Are Without Their Engine

“In producing this Spec 3 PU, we have updated the turbocharger thanks to the knowledge and technology of the Aero engine department in the area of aerodynamic design. Our test bench data shows a power increase over the previous version of our PU, however we know that we have not yet matched the figures from the manufacturers currently leading the championshi

According to Autosport, RBR’s Max Verstappen thinks all his team needs is “a bit more power, a bit more balance” in order for them to give Mercedes and Ferrari a better run for their money. With this upgrade, he’ll get his chance to prove he’s right…