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Red Bull may be looking down the barrel of another ‘multi-million’ pound disadvantage in Formula 1 if their ADUO-granted rivals choose to exploit a loophole in the FIA’s new initiative.
The Milton Keynes-based outfit continues to challenge the FIA’s ruling that they have developed the best engine for the 2026 F1 campaign, with every other power unit manufacturer, including championship leaders Mercedes, receiving free upgrades.
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Both Ferrari and Mercedes have been accused of turning down their engines in order to ensure that they will be considered for the FIA’s first roll-out of ADUO, with the Silver Arrows being given one free upgrade, and the iconic Italian racing team being handed two.
Toto Wolff initially theorised that Red Bull had the strongest engine during pre-season, but Mercedes’ dominance in the opening rounds of 2026 meant that fingers were instead pointed at the Brackley-based outfit.
- READ MORE: What is ADUO? New F1 engine rule explained as FIA issue verdict on Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari
Red Bull’s qualm with ADUO is that the assessment only accounts for the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), not the full package. In the current regulations, the ICE only makes up 50% of the overall power unit.
However, the free upgrades reportedly don’t have to be used solely on the ICE, which could have even more of a negative effect on Red Bull’s place in the F1 pecking order if teams opt to use this loophole.
ADUO-granted F1 teams can continue to receive aid by upgrading electrical power instead of the ICE
According to a report from Sport.de, every engine manufacturer that has been granted ADUO could ‘theoretically’ use their free upgrade on their power unit’s electrical components instead of the combustion engine.
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That would mean that when the FIA come to assessing the competitiveness of the grid’s engines again after the Hungarian GP, the measurement would yield the same result as before, ensuring that the current beneficiaries will receive further upgrades down the line.
Each upgrade is understood to be worth around £2.6m ($3.5m) each, with the attraction of ADUO being that manufacturers will have the cost completely omitted from their cost-capped budget.
In Red Bull’s case, however, any further upgrades will have to be deducted from their overall budget, thus meaning Milton Keynes could be facing even a ‘multi-million dollar disadvantage’ over their rivals for the remainder of the current campaign.
- READ MORE: Toto Wolff was right all along about ADUO as Martin Brundle admits ‘I don’t like’ F1 engine decision
If successful, it would be the second loophole that Mercedes has exploited during the introduction of the current ruleset. During pre-season, the grid was up in arms over the team’s Brixworth-based engineers utilising a compression ratio trick to gain an early advantage.
The loophole was officially closed ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix, with the FIA amending the wording of its technical regulations at the start of June. The sport’s governing body had initially planned to put a stop to it at the beginning of August.
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