Red Bull Ford Sees Over 2% ICE Gap to Mercedes as ADUO Deadline Nears

The Canadian Grand Prix marks the final race of the FIA’s first ADUO assessment period, triggering a political battle as manufacturers position themselves for potential upgrade allowances. Red Bull Ford team principal Laurent Mekies publicly placed his own power unit behind Mercedes, claiming a gap exceeding 2% – a threshold that would unlock extra development opportunities.

Why it matters:

ADUO is designed to close the performance gap between F1’s power unit manufacturers. If any ICE is between 2% and 4% behind the leader, the manufacturer gets one extra upgrade this season and next, plus a $3 million budget increase. A deficit over 4% doubles those allowances. The system aims to prevent dominance, but team bosses worry it could become a “leapfrog mechanism” – as Toto Wolff warned.

The details:

• Mekies said Red Bull Ford has done a “phenomenal” job to be on the grid fighting, but placed Mercedes clearly ahead. “We see a consistent gap compared to the Mercedes-Benz-powered cars,” he explained.
• He placed Red Bull Ford in a group with Ferrari and Audi, all trailing Mercedes by more than 2%. Charles Leclerc had earlier claimed Ferrari is even behind the Red Bull Ford unit on pure ICE power.
• Honda is widely seen as the furthest back, though the Japanese manufacturer declined to comment. Mekies acknowledged: “We read Honda further back.”
• The FIA has stated that ADUO decisions are purely data-driven – public lobbying has no impact. But the paddock’s positioning game is in full swing.

What’s next:

The FIA will announce its official ADUO classification no later than two weeks after the Canadian GP, meaning a verdict will come before the Monaco round. If Red Bull Ford’s deficit is confirmed, it will receive additional performance upgrades – potentially reshaping the competitive order for the rest of the season.