FIA announce F1 2026 change which could hamper Mercedes title charge

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FIA announce F1 2026 change which could hamper Mercedes title charge

ADUO is designed to give struggling power unit manufacturers a chance

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 8 May 2026 10:31 Updated: 12:16

An important lifeline for struggling F1 power unit manufacturers has been brought forward to later this month by the FIA.

F1's 2026 season is approaching its fifth round of the season, with the Canadian Grand Prix getting under way on the weekend of May 23 and 24. Canada's race around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was supposed to be the seventh race on the 2026 calendar, but plans changed due to the war in the Middle East.

The Saudi Arabian and Bahrain Grands Prix were cancelled, leaving no race weekend in April and a 22-race season rather than the originally planned 24-race season.

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And while this has led to further time for teams to improve upon their car designs and the FIA to make tweaks to the regulations, there was some concern about a power unit manufacturer lifeline being pushed further into the future.

The Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) periods were set out by the FIA before the start of the season, and were supposed to be taking place after races six, 12 and 18.

ADUO is designed to help power unit manufacturers who have struggled to develop a reliable, fast engine during the 2026 regulation changes, giving them time to bring upgrades to their power units.

And now, as a result of race six being further in the future than planned due to the two race cancellations, the FIA have tweaked their regulations to state that the first ADUO period will now take place after race five (the Canadian Grand Prix later this month).

The second ADUO period will now be after the 11th race weekend (Hungary), while the third and final period will be after race 18 (Mexico).

The sooner than expected arrival of the ADUO period may come as a blow to Mercedes' title ambitions, with the Brackley-based outfit clearly the dominant force in F1 as things stand. Mercedes have built a fast and reliable power unit which is helping the works team and their customer teams to be fighting right at the top end of the grid.

ADUO will allow the other four power unit manufacturers (Ferrari, Red Bull, Audi and Honda) to further their power unit development, but only if they meet specific guidelines, and this could help the other teams on the grid to catch up to Mercedes.

F1 2026 Regulations: Every new rule and car change explained

How does ADUO work?

According to Article 4 of Appendix 4 of the new technical regulations, a manufacturer qualifies for the development period if their: "ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) Performance Index is at least two per cent but less than four per cent below the best-performing ICE."

They are then eligible for one additional homologation upgrade in 2026, and one additional homologation upgrade in the following season.

If their ICE Performance Index is 'at least four per cent below the best-performing ICE', a power unit manufacturer can then receive two additional homologation upgrades in 2026, and two additional homologation upgrades in 2027.

The amount of time power unit manufacturers get in the ADUO period varies. If they are between two and four per cent behind the top power unit, then they will get 70 operating hours, and this incrementally rises depending on how far behind the best power unit they are.

If an underperforming power unit is more than 10 per cent behind the best on the F1 grid, then the manufacturer will get a whopping 230 operating hours to work on and develop upgrades for their power unit.

F1 Mercedes FIA 2026 regulations