The Head of Honda's Formula 1 operation, Yusuke Hasegawa, claims he is struggling to convince McLaren to continue their partnership beyond 2017 as a deal with Renault appears increasingly likely.

Bosses from the French manufacturer and the British team were seen leaving talks over the weekend at the Italian Grand Prix along with the Formula One Group's Motorsport Managing Director Ross Brawn.

Come Sunday, Executive Director at McLaren Zak Brown indicated an announcement would likely be made before the next race in Singapore, and Hasegawa's latest comments seemingly indicate a divorce is on the horizon.

"I'm still trying to make a good performance to convince them but I'm not sure it will be enough," he said. "Honda never give up on keeping this collaboration."

It has been another difficult few weeks for the Japanese engine supplier as their lack of performance meant McLaren was unable to compete for points at the high-speed Spa and Monza circuits.

Stoffel Vandoorne was also forced to take engine penalties at both races, while Fernando Alonso also dropped down in Italy but that was due to continued engine updates being brought which Hasegawa claims have made been done quicker and seen gains made. 

"It accelerated our development," he said referring to the impact of pressure put on Honda by McLaren. "It becomes motivational inside the factory. 

"Since Austria, the Spec 3 engine introduction, our development has accelerated and the rate of development is very good. We saw some performance gain with each upgrade so it's very encouraging."

The long-term beneficiaries of a McLaren/ Honda divorce could be Red Bull as their junior team Toro Rosso will swap supplier with the Woking outfit but senior team driver Daniel Ricciardo has backed McLaren to be more competitive should a deal with his team's current partner go ahead.

“Unfortunately Honda has not been able to make McLaren’s car fast with these engines,” the Australian said. “So I think if they put in a Renault engine or anything else, they will automatically be faster because the car itself looks very good.

“They should be stronger next year.”