FIA's Final 2026 ADUO Review Grants No New F1 Engine Upgrades: What Each Manufacturer Keeps

Formula 1's engine catch-up system ended its first season the way it spent the summer, with nobody moving. The FIA said on Nov. 10 that its third and final ADUO review of 2026 did not produce any additional homologations for the five power unit manufacturers, so the upgrade allowances handed out after the first review stand as the final word for this year and next.

The FIA's statement said the performance gaps to the leading engine "evolved" during the window, which covered races 12 to 18, but not by enough to change anyone's allocation. The FIA also said it will not publish the index numbers themselves.

What ADUO actually is

ADUO stands for Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities. It arrived with the new 2026 power unit rules, and the idea is simple: engines are homologated, or frozen, so a manufacturer that starts well behind would otherwise be stuck there. ADUO gives the stragglers extra chances to fix their hardware.

The FIA measures only the internal combustion engine, not the full hybrid package. Its explainer from May (opens in a new tab) says the ICE performance index is built from input shaft torque, engine speed, MGU-K power and a weighting for how much power matters to lap time.

The thresholds work like this. An engine at least 2% behind the best one qualifies. A gap of 2% to under 4% earns one extra upgrade this season and one next season. A gap of 4% or more earns two and two. Qualifying manufacturers also get extra dyno testing time and spending room outside the cost cap, starting at up to $3 million for the smallest gap and climbing with the deficit.

FIA single seater director Nikolas Tombazis has stressed that this is not a way to equalize cars. "It's important to make clear that ADUO is not a kind of balance of performance mechanism," Tombazis said in the FIA's May explainer. "It is, in fact, a Cost Cap relief mechanism."

Who got what

The first window covered the first five races, Australia through Canada, after the Middle East cancellations shortened it. That review named Red Bull Powertrains, the Ford partnership that powers Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls, as the benchmark engine. The second window, through Hungary, changed nothing, according to RACER (opens in a new tab). Neither did the third.

The allocations for 2026 and 2027:

Red Bull Ford: none, as the benchmark.

Mercedes: 2% to 4% behind. One extra upgrade in 2026 and one in 2027. Mercedes also supplies McLaren, Williams and Alpine.

Ferrari: more than 4% behind. Two in 2026 and two in 2027. Ferrari also supplies Haas and Cadillac.

Audi: more than 4% behind. Two in 2026 and two in 2027.

Honda: more than 4% behind. Two in 2026 and two in 2027. Honda powers Aston Martin.

Use it or lose it

These are opportunities, not finished parts. PlanetF1 reported in August that Audi, Ferrari and Honda had each used one of their 2026 upgrades by then, with Audi going first after Barcelona, Ferrari bringing one to Austria and Honda following at Zandvoort. Sky Sports reported on Nov. 10 that Mercedes had not yet used its 2026 upgrade.

That matters now, because the FIA rules say any upgrade not used by the final round of the season it belongs to is forfeited. Only Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi remain.

The strange part

ADUO's verdict sits awkwardly next to the results. Mercedes won the first five races, Kimi Antonelli clinched the drivers' title in Mexico City and the team sealed the constructors' crown in Sao Paulo, yet Mercedes is the one getting help while Red Bull gets none. The explanation is the narrow scope. ADUO rates only the combustion engine, so a car can win plenty while its ICE trails on the FIA's index, and the rules stop Red Bull from ever qualifying while its engine is the reference point.

What comes next

The next ADUO review covers the first six races of 2027, from Bahrain to Miami, according to Grande Premio. The 2027 allowances already on the books can stack with any new award, and the FIA's example says a manufacturer could bring four upgrades in 2027, two from its 2026 award and two from its 2027 award, provided it still falls inside the thresholds next season.

Tombazis said the FIA "has undertaken extensive analysis as part of the review of ADUO this year," per Grande Premio, and said, per Sky Sports, that "the ADUO concept is the right one for Formula 1." He also said it must keep changing to stay "efficient, relevant and fit for purpose," per PlanetF1, and the FIA is working with the manufacturers and teams on refinements to the method for future seasons.

Our standings breakdown has the full title picture heading into Las Vegas.

Sources: FIA, Sky Sports, PlanetF1, Grande Premio, RACER.

Photo: Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (file photo from Nov. 2026, Sao Paulo Grand Prix).