Mercedes and Red Bull have opened the door to a wider review of Formula 1’s ADUO development system as Honda continues working to close its power unit deficit. Following discussions involving FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and Fernando Alonso, both Toto Wolff and Laurent Mekies have indicated that further support for the Japanese manufacturer could be considered, although any intervention would form part of a broader debate over how the catch-up mechanism should work.
Honda still faces a long road to reach the leading power unit manufacturers, and closing that gap will inevitably require both time and resources. Audi, for example, has also acknowledged that realistically it may need to wait until at least 2028 before it can significantly reduce its deficit to the benchmark power unit. Behind the scenes, however, Honda is intensifying its efforts to accelerate its recovery.
Honda changes F1 leadership as it targets a bigger step forward
At the start of the week, Honda announced an important change to its Formula 1 power unit development structure. Tetsushi Kakuda, who has been leading the HRC F1 project, will hand over responsibility on October 1 to Yoichiro Fukao, currently Deputy Leader of the F1 Project and head of the software division.
The move represents another sign of change within a programme that is attempting to rebuild its technical foundations. Honda has already found some improvements during 2026, but a more significant development push is now taking shape at Sakura as attention increasingly shifts towards the next stage of the project.
Time and resources will both be required before Honda can return to the highest competitive level, but the manufacturer also needs sufficient regulatory freedom to use them effectively. The FIA created the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities mechanism specifically to help power unit manufacturers that fall behind the benchmark.
Honda has benefited from substantial concessions under that system. Even so, ADUO does not provide an immediate route back to competitiveness.
Even with ADUO, closing an F1 engine gap takes time
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur recently explained the difficulty during an interview with Motorsport.com, highlighting that simply receiving extra development freedom does not mean a manufacturer can rapidly produce a new competitive specification.
“We also have to keep in mind that ADUO is helping, but it is extremely difficult to develop during a season, even with ADUO and the extra budget, because introducing a new engine specification is expensive. The material cost for the power unit is enormous,” Frederic Vasseur explained at the end of August.
The challenge surrounding ADUO development, production costs and the budget cap is not exclusive to Ferrari. Every manufacturer must balance performance development against the need to produce and maintain enough power units to complete a season.
There is another practical problem: teams need spare engines. A manufacturer can plan its allocation around expected upgrades, but once a failure occurs it may be forced to choose between returning to an older specification and sacrificing performance, or producing another example of the latest unit with the new components.
Honda has chosen to homologate only one new specification during the current season despite retaining the possibility of another update. The most important developments are expected to arrive next year with 2027 in mind.
Aston Martin is taking a similar long-term approach on the chassis side. After Baku, the team is not expected to introduce further major developments to the AMR26, meaning both sides of the works partnership are increasingly turning their attention towards the future.
The difficult start to the Honda partnership has even prompted discussion over whether Aston Martin could eventually reconsider a Mercedes engine return if Honda’s problems persist, although Honda’s immediate focus remains firmly on improving its own package.
Mohammed Ben Sulayem considers how the FIA could help Honda
It is also clear that neither Honda nor Formula 1 wants the recovery process to take too long. Having a manufacturer of Honda’s scale fighting near the front would strengthen the championship, while seeing Aston Martin struggling near the back and behind much of the midfield is a less desirable outcome.
Speaking at the New Economy Forum in Madrid, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem stressed how important he believes it would be to see Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin competing near the front again.
“I saw him very sad. I told him: Fernando, I understand that it’s not acceptable to come to your home country and find yourself now, after being a two-time world champion, in last position. In May we did something, legally, for the team, regarding the engine, to allow them to improve,” Mohammed Ben Sulayem said, referring to a conversation with Alonso at Monza while speaking at the Madrid event.
Ben Sulayem was referring to measures introduced earlier in the season when the FIA, together with the power unit manufacturers, agreed to provide Honda with greater resources, both financially and through additional development time under ADUO.
The question now is whether those measures are enough. Honda has indicated that it has not yet held a direct meeting with the FIA president on further concessions, but rival manufacturers appear willing to discuss additional support.
Toto Wolff says Honda ‘needs more’ ADUO support
Ben Sulayem is fully aware that any modification is governed by the F1 Power Unit Governance Agreement. However, his public concern over Alonso’s situation also forms part of a wider discussion about the weaknesses of the parameters currently used to calculate ADUO.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff openly acknowledged that the system may need adjustment after the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid.
“I think ADUO was designed as a catch-up mechanism and that formula was unlocked for Honda. And they need more,” Wolff said.
The head of Mercedes also defended the FIA president’s discussions with Alonso and stressed the wider importance of keeping major manufacturers competitive.
“I think the conversation that the president had with Alonso is absolutely legitimate. We want to have all these big manufacturers in the sport. We want them to be competitive and winning. Regulations are regulations, designed for the good of the sport, and sometimes they require an adjustment. The conversation was entirely appropriate.”
Red Bull also supports a review – but has its own ADUO concerns
Red Bull has also backed the possibility of granting Honda additional support, although its position sits within a much wider debate over how ADUO itself is calculated.
It is no secret that Red Bull has been frustrated by the current ranking system. The Milton Keynes operation believes the published classification does not accurately reflect every area of its power unit performance, and even senior management has been involved in discussions with the FIA.
The current situation could limit Red Bull’s development opportunities heading into 2027, particularly in the hybrid areas where the manufacturer believes it has more ground to recover.
The FIA has already confirmed that work is taking place behind the scenes to review how the catch-up mechanism is assessed. Restricting ADUO calculations primarily to V6 internal combustion performance was originally requested by the manufacturers, while the governing body had been open to using a broader range of parameters.
One possible outcome is therefore a more comprehensive system that could simultaneously address existing weaknesses and provide additional measures to support Honda.
Laurent Mekies expects further talks over ADUO rules
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies stressed that Formula 1’s competitors have already demonstrated a willingness to alter the rules when the wider interests of the championship justify it.
“I think that, although we can’t always agree, as a sport we try to keep a fairly open view of the regulations. There was actually a first change to the ADUO regulations made earlier this year, precisely to help those who were much further behind compared with what was initially voted. All the teams voted for that change. We voted in favour of it, for the good of the sport,” Laurent Mekies explained.
“We can’t agree on everything, but certainly, as stakeholders in the sport, if there is a situation that needs to be corrected, that requires intervention or support, we usually find solutions. I’m sure we’ll sit down and discuss the future of the ADUO regulations. We already know some of their shortcomings, and I’m sure there are others that need to be addressed, like the one you mentioned.”
Honda and Aston Martin still face a long recovery
The willingness shown by Mercedes and Red Bull does not mean Honda will automatically receive unlimited additional freedom. Any adjustment would need to fit within Formula 1’s existing governance structure and maintain competitive fairness between every power unit manufacturer.
However, the debate increasingly appears to extend beyond Honda alone. The first season of Formula 1’s new power unit regulations has exposed weaknesses in a catch-up mechanism designed before teams had real-world data showing how the different combustion and hybrid systems would compare.
Honda’s difficulties have made those shortcomings more visible, but Red Bull’s dissatisfaction with its own ADUO position demonstrates why the wider framework may also need attention.
Whatever Formula 1, the FIA and the manufacturers decide over the coming months, Aston Martin and Honda still face a substantial development challenge. Regulatory support can create more opportunities to improve, but it cannot remove the time required to design, manufacture, validate and race a genuinely competitive Formula 1 power unit.
For Fernando Alonso, that recovery may still not come quickly enough. For Honda, however, the growing willingness among its rivals to reconsider ADUO could at least provide more room to accelerate the process.
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