(Motorsport-Total.com) – Few topics in the Formula 1 paddock have sparked as many political discussions in the first half of the season as ADUO, the “Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities” – additional development and upgrade possibilities.
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The system was introduced as a safety net for manufacturers falling behind – partly in response to Honda’s situation under the previous regulations. In practice, however, it has turned into a political battlefield.
Toto Wolff immediately warned that it must not become a pure overtaking mechanism. All the more surprising was that not Mercedes High Performance Powertrains, but Red Bull Ford Powertrains topped the first FIA ranking.
There are two reasons for this: First, the ADUO measurements are based solely on the internal combustion engine. This leads to a significant discrepancy between the measurement method and the actual development possibilities, which also cover the electric side of the power unit.
Second, there were rumors in the paddock that several manufacturers – including Mercedes and Ferrari – acted tactically. They did not show their full potential at the first race weekends to secure an ADUO token (in Ferrari’s case, even two).
The result of this first phase caused considerable frustration at Red Bull – which also explains why the results have not been officially announced to this day.
FIA emphasizes: Measurements are accurate
Nikolas Tombazis, Formula sport director at the FIA, had previously indicated that he was quite open to further parameters in the ADUO measurements – such as the size of the turbo. However, the teams and manufacturers pushed to keep the system as simple as possible.
This raises the question of whether the FIA was surprised by all the controversies surrounding ADUO this season: “Well, in Formula 1 almost everything seems quite explosive,” explains Tombazis. “It is therefore very rare that eleven teams and five or six PU manufacturers say: ‘Fantastic, we all agree.'”
“The only thing I think everyone agrees on is that the summer break in August is a good thing – and I have to remind you that it was my idea.”
“But that’s all there is agreement on. I think everything else is difficult. And even for that, it took time until everyone agreed. You know, when Franz Tost was still team principal, he didn’t want that.”
According to Tombazis, two aspects must be distinguished when evaluating ADUO: how accurate the measurements are and whether the system works as originally intended.
Amid dissatisfaction with the result of the first phase, Red Bull called for a factual review of the results. According to Tombazis, however, the FIA’s measurements have proven to be precise.
“Everything is quite sensitive because everyone is so ambitious and so focused on their position compared to the others. Therefore, it was quite a challenge,” he says. “In my opinion, our measurement has proven to be very accurate.”
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“Does that mean everything worked smoothly? No, because obviously people are not happy and so on. Do we need to think about improvements for the future? Yes, I would say that.”
FIA talks about “weaknesses”
One of the obvious weaknesses is that the competition could effectively checkmate Red Bull: If the other manufacturers do not use their allocated tokens for the development of the internal combustion engine, they could theoretically keep Red Bull at the top of the ranking even longer.
However, Tombazis does not believe this will happen in practice: “Well, I don’t think it would be advantageous to always stay below your maximum performance just to continue getting more opportunities. Because what use are such opportunities if the goal is not to be at the top in the end?”
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Nevertheless, the 58-year-old Greek admits that the system needs to be reconsidered for the coming years: “I think the system works as it was designed, but I do believe there are some weaknesses that we need to address in the future.”
“Also, to make it less time-consuming and less controversial, we need to take steps to improve it for the future.”
A logical proposal would be to consider the entire power unit in the measurements and not just the internal combustion engine. However, Tombazis does not want to discuss concrete ideas at this point.
ADUO works for Honda – but does it work for Formula 1 as a whole?
Honda is naturally the manufacturer with the greatest deficit and thus the clearest example of what ADUO was originally developed for.
Shintaro Orihara, senior track manager and chief engineer at Honda, confirms that the system works for Honda. In the longer term, however, he is open to rethinking in the interest of the entire sport.
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“I think the number we received from the FIA looks reasonable. I would say this number is fair. And thanks to ADUO, we are now working hard to further develop our engine,” Orihara said in an exclusive interview with the global voice output of Motorsport.com, a sister platform of Motorsport-Total.com in the Motorsport Network.
“At the moment, it is therefore difficult to say whether the ADUO system is working correctly or not. But at least for Honda, it applies: Thanks to the ADUO system, we have the maximum chance to further develop our engine.”
Tombazis: “Maybe we will adjust things after we have observed how the ADUO system works for Formula 1 overall. It works well for Honda, but we have to keep an eye on how it affects all manufacturers. It should be fair. At the moment, it looks fair for Honda, but we have to keep watching.”
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