F1 paddock insiders want the FIA to explain how Ferrari were so fast at Barcelona GP

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Ferrari’s win in Barcelona has left multiple insiders baffled, as the FIA have granted them two extra engine upgrades for 2026 and 2027 through ADUO.

The FIA caused controversy and debate with their ruling for F1’s Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities before the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. Mercedes have been granted upgrades for this season and the next, despite winning the opening six races of 2026.

It was decided that Red Bull have the fastest engine, with ADUO being judged on the internal combustion engine’s performance and no other component. Mercedes will get one additional upgrade for 2026 and 2027, while Ferrari, Audi and Honda will get two.

What are your thoughts on Mercedes being granted an engine upgrade through ADUO despite their 2026 dominance?

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F1 insiders want the FIA to explain Ferrari’s pace in Barcelona after being granted upgrades through ADUO

This made the result in Barcelona all the more confusing for insiders. Despite the FIA ruling that they are 4% behind Red Bull, Lewis Hamilton won the Barcelona GP for Ferrari, winning by over 20 seconds from George Russell and Lando Norris.

Max Verstappen could only manage fourth for Red Bull, while Isack Hadjar produced a great recovery drive to finish P6 after a dreadful start. It is a good haul of points, but they were behind Mercedes and Ferrari, despite the FIA deciding they had the best engine.

It has left, according to journalist Julianne Cerasoli, many insiders demanding an explanation as to how Red Bull were off the pace, and Ferrari were so quick in Barcelona, when ADUO rules the Maranello outfit are lacking power.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

Cerasoli said on her YouTube channel: “And the FIA people say: ‘Look, we’ve seen it all. We just grabbed these figures at random – let’s just look at the qualifying times, let’s take the average of the two drivers, let’s just look at the race.’

“It all came down to the same conclusion: that Red Bull had the best engine. Now let’s see what happens. I reckon we’ll have a few weeks of us talking a lot about this issue still, won’t we?

“Because the speculation in the paddock is: how are you going to explain that Mercedes was winning everything, and now Ferrari, which is over 8% behind in power, wins a race? And how are you going to explain that the best engine isn’t winning races and is well behind, right?

“And the talk on the paddock is that perhaps Mercedes used the engine in a way precisely to get round the regulations. It’s designing the engine with the regulations in mind.

Lewis Hamilton is now only missing a Grand Prix pole position for Ferrari 🏆 Predict when it will come?

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“So, they’re already designing an engine that won’t deliver a huge amount of power. But how are they doing that?

“There are loads and loads of questions that we might discuss in the coming weeks to see how this story unfolds, and we’ll also see how Lewis Hamilton performs in the next few races, won’t we?”

Mercedes and Ferrari were accused of deliberately lowering the power in their engines to gain help from ADUO. With these upgrades now being granted, it could give them even more of an advantage and leave Red Bull behind.