McLaren Racing boss Jost Capito says he fully expects Honda to make a "big step" forward with their power unit in 2017, as they have had enough time to understand what is required of them and for the relationship with McLaren to fully form.
Whilst Honda have taken massive strides this season compared to 2015, their power unit is still considered the weakest on the grid.
The Japanese manufacturer has big plans for next year, which includes a complete overhaul of the power unit's design – which has been made possible by the decision to scrap engine development tokens.
Capito is therefore expecting huge gains on both sides as he admitted McLaren too must improve if they're to beat the likes of Mercedes and Red Bull.
"I expect improvement on the car from McLaren and a big step from Honda on the engine," he told BBC Sport.
"It takes always a certain time to form a team with a new partner like this," he explained. "McLaren and Honda were partners before but it was a long time ago. All new people are involved and it takes a while for Honda to understand how McLaren works and for McLaren to understand how Honda works. I think this is now achieved."
Capito is confident the improvements will lead to a competitive McLaren.
"It is a very good partnership and the Honda guys understand more what is needed from the chassis side and we understand more what is needed from the engine side as well," he added.
"I expect really not just the improvement of each but also the improvement of the overall relationship. So one plus one is not two – it should be three."
