FIA grants no further engine upgrades after final review

The FIA will grant no further engine upgrade opportunities after the third and final review period of 2026, it has confirmed. Formula 1 next heads to The Strip for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, from November 20 to 22.

The governing body said on Tuesday that the gaps to the best-performing engine had evolved between round 12 in Hungary and round 18 in the United States. The changes were not sufficient to trigger additional upgrades. In a statement, the FIA said the results of the third ADUO analysis period had been communicated to all power unit manufacturers. It added that relative performance gaps to the leading internal combustion engine had changed, but had not led to any further homologations.

The FIA also cited the confidential nature of the data in explaining why it would not release further details on power unit performance measurements. Its director of single-seaters, Nikolas Tombazis, defended the assessment process: “The FIA has undertaken extensive analysis as part of the review of ADUO this year. Based on the quality of the data and the robustness of the assessment process, we are confident in our findings and the conclusions reached.”

Tombazis also said the first year of implementation had reinforced the FIA’s belief that ADUO was the right concept for Formula 1, while stressing that the system should continue to evolve. The governing body is working with power unit manufacturers and teams on refinements to the methodology, with the aim of preserving ADUO’s effectiveness in future seasons.

The outcomes of earlier reviews show what was at stake: Ferrari, Audi and Honda, whose performance had been found to be more than 4% below the benchmark, were granted two upgrade opportunities for this season and two more for the next. It was theoretically possible for Mercedes, Ferrari, Audi and Honda to reduce their deficits to Red Bull, or even move up to 2% ahead of the Milton Keynes outfit.

The manufacturers do not all supply the same teams: Ferrari supplies Haas and Cadillac, while Red Bull supplies Racing Bulls. Audi produces engines for its own team, and Honda exclusively supplies Aston Martin. The FIA’s decision closes the final 2026 review period without further upgrade opportunities as Formula 1 prepares to race in Las Vegas.