Honda ruled motorize to Red Bull in 2016 despite having capacity to do so because McLaren did not want to have a rival so hard with your same engine, as did Ferrari and Mercedes to deny a motor to the austrian team as a threat that could overcome them with equal arms because of the strong designs of chassis and aerodynamics that define Red Bull.
In the Red Bull, both Adrian Newey as Christian Horner has praised the program of development of Honda for the data that you have gotten when they tried to negotiate with the japanese manufacturer to be able to count with an engine for 2016, perhaps they are compliments because you are still thinking Honda for the future… The veto of Ron Dennis made that the japanese do not surtieran engines to Red Bull in 2016, in addition to Honda then it would indicate that even they were unprepared, something that will change in 2017 or 2018.
Now Yasuhisa Arai has been reported that they have another customer could make the development of the Honda engine is accelerated by having more data and cars for testing. Without a doubt it would be a benefit to Honda, though the japanese ensures that in the contract they have with McLaren, they could veto or to indicate which equipment would be most appropriate. Everything seems to indicate that the optimal candidate would be Sauber, open to change in the future and to which, already pointed to Ron Dennis as interesting.
that was B-team of Ferrari now seems somewhat forgotten and, even more, what will be with the arrival of Haas F1 that shares more common elements with the team from Maranello, and could therefore be more suitable for use as a test bench. So Sauber can’t do more than seek another partner that can give you a boost to get out of the critical situation in which they find themselves now. If Jenson Button is more, it would also be a good place to put drivers like Stoffel Vandoorne.