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The FIA are reportedly considering changing the rules around power unit development this season, which could greatly benefit the likes of Aston Martin and potentially even Ferrari.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli won the Chinese Grand Prix from his teammate George Russell, with Lewis Hamilton finally securing his first podium finish for Ferrari.
It was another third and fourth-place finish for Fred Vasseur’s team, with junior driver Oliver Bearman continuing his brilliant start to the 2026 season by coming home in fifth for Haas, who incidentally also use the Ferrari power unit.
For Aston Martin, it was another disappointing weekend, and the opportunity to try and improve their Honda power unit cannot come soon enough.
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The FIA decided when introducing the sport’s new regulations in 2026 to include a pathway for power unit manufacturers to improve their engines at various points in the season to avoid one team, or group of teams, running away with the championship.
Journalist Jon Noble believes that despite the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix being cancelled, which was set to mess up the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) system, the FIA are set to alter the timings associated with the programme, which will be a relief to any struggling manufacturers.
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Talking about the potential rule change on The Race F1 Podcast, Noble said: “I think the other important element is the engine or power unit upgrade.
There are metrics in the rules for this additional development and upgrade opportunities, ADUO, a classic F1 phrase now.
“Which was originally going to be after race six, which was Miami. Now we’ve lost Bahrain and Saudi [Arabia], race six is Monaco, I think I’m right.
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“But from what we understand, the FIA are going to change the wording of the regulations so it will either become a set date or will be an earlier race to divide the season into four.
“So, it’s still likely to be around Miami time. It’s if your power unit’s deemed to be 2% behind the benchmark, and I think I am correct in saying that Fred Vasseur said tonight on current performance, he expects them to get an ADUO uplift.”
Noble’s colleague Edd Straw replied: “He did seem to say that. It slightly surprised me, but he was certainly indicating that it could be a possibility.
“It did surprise me because I’m not sure there’s much evidence from the outside of the Ferrari power units 2% off, because obviously it’s particularly talking about the V6 as well.”
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Many will argue that the Ferrari-powered teams are not far enough behind Mercedes to warrant being allowed to update their engines.
However, there are suspicions that Mercedes are not running their engine at full power yet to try and stop the likes of Ferrari and Red Bull from being eligible for an ADUO.
The FIA created two levels of development opportunities, one for teams more than 2% off the leading manufacturer, and another for teams more than 4% behind.
Aston Martin clearly fit into the second category, meaning they could bring two rounds of upgrades rather than just one after the first deadline.
Chief trackside officer Mike Krack said after the Chinese Grand Prix, via MARCA: “I think it’s difficult. Obviously, we’re all working flat out on it.
“If we go back 10 days, we were talking about six laps, and then we found solutions to the problem, especially for the most vulnerable point, which at that time was the battery.
“I think, as I said, if we go back 10 days and see that we’ve completed all the sessions in China (except the race), the car was on track from the start of the session, it never stopped on the track, so there has been progress.
“Obviously, it’s not progress in performance; we have to be honest with ourselves, but I think we now have a couple more days to work on it, and I’m pretty sure we’ll find more improvements. However, to give a definitive calendar, it’s very difficult to say.”
Fans were upset by Fernando Alonso’s onboard camera, as the Spanish driver physically couldn’t keep his hands on the wheel of his Aston Martin due to the vibrations.
Honda’s first aim needs to be to make the car drivable over a race distance, but an upgrade for Ferrari could suddenly change the course of the entire championship.
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