Laurent Mekies, Red Bull team principal, believes that Mercedes clearly dominates the start of the new engine era, while other engine manufacturers await the crucial conclusions of the FIA’s ADUO program.
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The Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) program was put in place to prevent prolonged domination by a single engine manufacturer, as was the case in the previous hybrid era.
This system analyzes the performance of internal combustion engines at three key moments of the season. The first checkpoint was carried out after the Canadian Grand Prix, with official communication expected within two weeks.
The results could have significant consequences for Red Bull Ford Powertrains, which is still in the ramp-up phase under these new regulations.
Mekies places Mercedes clearly ahead
According to Mekies, Mercedes currently has a clear advantage in the engine manufacturer hierarchy, a finding that directly concerns its eight cars distributed among Mercedes, McLaren, Alpine, and Williams.
“We believe the guys at Red Bull Ford Powertrains have done an extraordinary job to put us on the grid in a competitive position from a project that was, a few years ago, essentially a department of Red Bull Racing in the background,” Mekies explained.
He thus highlights the rapid progress of the team, despite a particularly complex starting context against already well-established competitors.
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An already marked hierarchy at the start of the season
Mekies then detailed his vision of the current performance order among the different engine manufacturers.
“We believe the current ranking is Mercedes leading in terms of power unit, ahead of everyone else, which represents eight cars and therefore a very significant advantage,” he declared.
He then estimates that Red Bull, Ferrari, and Audi are in an intermediate group, with a constant gap to the Mercedes units.
“Behind them, there’s a group where we are, with Ferrari and Audi… and then Honda is probably a bit further back,” he added.
An awaited verdict that could change everything
The result of the first ADUO cycle is now eagerly awaited in the paddock, as it will determine whether certain manufacturers can benefit from additional development support.
For Red Bull, this evaluation could be decisive in its ability to close the gap with Mercedes, already considered the benchmark at the start of this new engine era.
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