Ferrari designs two engine upgrades

Ferrari’s problem right now is not hard to describe. The SF-26 looks better than it did at the start of the season, but Mercedes still has the stronger all-round package — and a lot of that edge seems to be coming from the power unit. So Ferrari is already working on two engine changes for 2026, even before the FIA formally decides how much in-season engine development it will be allowed. The point is simple: if the rules open the door, Maranello wants to be ready to walk through it. ### Why is Ferrari talking about engine upgrades at all? Because 2026 is not a normal carry-over season. Formula 1 switched to new power-unit rules with a much bigger electrical share, fully sustainable fuel, and a different balance between combustion power and hybrid deployment. Those engines are heavily locked down once homologated, so teams cannot just redesign them whenever they want. Ferrari’s route back is the ADUO system — extra development chances for manufacturers that fall far enough behind the benchmark. (scuderiafans.com) ### What is ADUO, exactly? ADUO stands for Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities. Basically, it is F1’s anti-runaway clause for the new engine era. After a set number of races, the FIA measures each manufacturer against the leading power unit. If a maker is more than 2% down, it can earn upgrade opportunities; if the gap is larger, it can get more. Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur said back in March that Ferrari expected to qualify for this help, which tells you the team has known for a while that the engine is part of the deficit. (formula1.com) ### What are the two upgrades Ferrari is designing? The reporting points to two very specific areas. One is the combustion chamber — the bit of the engine where fuel-air mix burns and creates the force that drives the car. Ferrari wants better efficiency at high engine speeds and fewer losses under load. The other is the turbocharger, with work focused on compressor-vane count and impeller angle rather than a full-size change. That sounds small, but turbo details can change how quickly the engine breathes and how effectively it turns fuel into usable power. (the-race.com) ### Why not just redesign the whole thing? Because Ferrari probably cannot. The rules are meant to stop exactly that. ADUO is a catch-up mechanism, not a blank check. So the smart play is targeted surgery — fix the areas with the biggest return while keeping the overall package, cooling layout, and car packaging intact. Think of it like changing the lungs and the burn quality, not rebuilding the whole body. (scuderiafans.com) ### How big is the gap Ferrari is chasing? The number getting repeated is about 20 horsepower to Mercedes. Ferrari’s internal goal, from the reporting around these planned changes, is to claw back roughly half of that. That would not automatically flip the championship, but in a regulation set this tight, 10 horsepower is not cosmetic. It changes qualifying margins, overtaking pressure, and how aggressively Ferrari can run the rest of the car. (the-race.com) ### What does Miami have to do with this? Miami mattered because Ferrari arrived with a major car package and still did not erase Mercedes’ advantage. That seems to have sharpened the team’s conclusion that chassis and aero gains alone will not be enough. Motorsport’s reporting before the weekend already had Charles Leclerc warning that Mercedes would likely remain ahead despite Ferrari’s updates. In other words — Miami did not create the engine problem, but it made the engine problem harder to ignore. (scuderiafans.com) ### When would Ferrari actually be allowed to use these changes? The key checkpoint is after the Canadian Grand Prix on May 22–24, when the FIA is expected to determine ADUO eligibility for manufacturers under the new cycle described in recent reporting. Ferrari is widely expected to get at least one token. The team is doing the obvious thing now: design first, wait for the formal green light second. (the-race.com) ### So what is the real story here? It is not just that Ferrari has two upgrades on the drawing board. It is that Ferrari has already accepted where the weakness is. After Miami, the team’s recovery plan looks less like “the next aero package will save us” and more like “we need engine help, and we need it fast.” If ADUO opens up after Canada, Ferrari wants those fixes ready immediately. (scuderiafans.com)