Red Bull Retain F1's Most Powerful Engine

Red Bull's Formula 1 power unit has once again been rated the most powerful internal combustion engine on the grid, according to the latest assessment by the sport's governing body, the FIA.

The findings, released after Sunday's Dutch Grand Prix, repeat the results of the FIA's first assessment earlier this season and represent a setback for Red Bull, which had hoped the process might provide an opportunity to develop and upgrade its engine.

The assessment system was introduced this year alongside Formula 1's new hybrid power-unit regulations. Its purpose is to give manufacturers whose internal combustion engines are judged to be significantly behind the benchmark an opportunity to close the performance gap through additional development.

The system, known as the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (Aduo) programme, was agreed upon by all power-unit manufacturers but has attracted controversy because Mercedes is widely regarded as having the strongest overall power unit.

However, the FIA assessment does not measure the complete power unit. It focuses solely on the performance of the internal combustion engine, while the electrical components - which account for close to half of a modern F1 power unit's overall performance - are excluded.

The review is conducted every six races, with the latest assessment covering the first 12 races of the season.

The FIA said Mercedes had been determined to be within the 2-4 percent range behind the leading internal combustion engine. Audi, Ferrari and Honda were all assessed as being more than four percent behind the benchmark.

As a result, Mercedes will be permitted one additional engine upgrade during 2026 and another in 2027. Audi, Ferrari and Honda will each receive two additional development opportunities over the same period.

Red Bull, however, will not receive any additional opportunities under the current assessment because its internal combustion engine remains the benchmark.

The results underline the contrasting fortunes of Mercedes and Red Bull during the opening half of the season.

Mercedes have won eight of the 12 races so far, while Red Bull have yet to record a victory under the new regulations.

Red Bull established a new engine design and manufacturing operation ahead of the introduction of the 2026 rules, taking on the challenge of producing its own power unit under the sport's latest technical regulations.

FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said the governing body was confident in the reliability of its assessment.

"The FIA has undertaken thorough and exhaustive analysis as part of our Aduo review process," Tombazis said.

He added that the quality of the available data and the FIA's analysis gave the governing body a high degree of confidence in its conclusions.

Tombazis also stressed that the FIA had to protect confidential information and the intellectual property of teams and engine manufacturers when publishing its findings.

He acknowledged that the Aduo system was being used for the first time this season and said the FIA could make adjustments to the process in future discussions with manufacturers.

For Red Bull, however, the latest assessment means there will be no additional engine development allowance for now, despite the team's hopes of being given greater scope to improve its power unit.