Racing
© Jonathan Borba
The FIA is due within days to decide which Formula 1 power-unit manufacturers qualify for ADUO support after the first five races of 2026, and that ruling is now central to a wider political fight over whether the sport can still change its 2027 engine rules.
Under the 2026-2030 Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities framework, the FIA measures each manufacturer’s internal combustion engine performance across the opening five rounds using the best team running that power unit as the reference. The governing body must formally communicate the beneficiaries within 15 days of the Canadian Grand Prix.
That matters because ADUO can open development in areas that would otherwise stay protected after homologation. Beneficiaries can gain scope to work on the ICE block, internal thermal-engine components, oil and water circulation systems, the MGU-K, battery, ERS and control electronics. The system also allows one or two additional homologations between 2026 and 2027, along with extra flexibility on budget and test-bench work.
The decision is becoming more sensitive because the FIA’s reported “basic agreement” on a 2027 fix appears far less settled than first suggested. The only broad acceptance appears to be that the new rules’ energy-management problem needs to be eased and that any meaningful fix would require more fuel flow. Beyond that, there is no clear consensus on what can still be done in time. One account of the talks described the idea of a real agreement as an “overstatement” and said “nothing is fix.”
The dispute turns on how big the change would need to be. Reporting on the discussions says a fuel-flow increase large enough to deliver roughly 50kW more from the combustion engine would demand 12 to 15 percent more fuel and force major engine changes rather than simple reinforcement. An unnamed insider described the result bluntly: “The resulting engine is in a completely different league.”
That is where ADUO and the 2027 debate collide. A major rule change would not just tweak the current concept. It would push manufacturers into fundamental redesign work, potentially making the ADUO framework far less relevant because everyone would immediately divert effort toward a new-spec 2027 package. The concern among opponents is that any exemption structure built around helping lagging manufacturers next year would effectively be bypassed if the rules are rewritten on a larger scale.
Manufacturers are not aligned on that risk. Ferrari is described as being primarily concerned by the ADUO rules themselves, while Mercedes and Red Bull Powertrains are among those supporting a larger 2027 change despite the possibility that it would trigger a broader reset. Even the practical timing is a problem, because engine components carry long lead times for development, validation and production, and reporting on the situation described the schedule as already being “five minutes after twelve.”
That leaves Ferrari in a pivotal position. Any 2027 rule change requires a supermajority: FIA and Formula 1 support, plus four of the six registered engine manufacturers. General Motors can vote despite not yet having built an engine, but as Cadillac is a Ferrari customer its position is politically sensitive. If Ferrari backs a change, the numbers can move. If Ferrari refuses, Mercedes, Red Bull Powertrains and Honda would have only three manufacturer votes, leaving the proposal short of the threshold needed to pass.