Charles Leclerc has ruled out Ferrari closing the gap on Mercedes\u2019 power unit in the the first round of F1\u2019s ADUO assessments, which comes into effect after the Canadian GP.<\/p>\n
Although he believes Ferrari will be granted the additional upgrade, he says Ferrari\u2019s power unit is too far off Mercedes\u2019 and even Ford\u2019s to have much of an impact.<\/p>\n
Ferrari unlikely to close Mercedes power unit gap says Leclerc<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> to your favourites list for news you can trust<\/p>\n ADUO stands for Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities.<\/p>\n During specific periods of each F1 season from 2026 to 2030, the FIA will monitor each manufacturer\u2019s Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) performance by creating an \u2018ICE Performance Index\u2019.<\/p>\n If a power unit manufacturer\u2019s ICE is 2 per cent or more behind the best-performing engine in the Performance Index, the PUM will qualify for ADUO.<\/p>\n A PUM that is deemed to be at least 2 per cent but less than 4 per cent down, will be granted one additional homologation upgrade in the current season, while any power unit that is 4 per cent or more down will be given two additional upgrades.<\/p>\n The first round of ADUO evaluations ends after Sunday\u2019s Canadian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n But while Ferrari<\/a> is hoping to be granted that ADUO, Leclerc doubts it will have much of an impact, such is Mercedes\u2019 engine advantage.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s going to be very difficult [to catch Mercedes],\u201d Leclerc said. \u201cI think they have a very big advantage.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd ADUO, I mean I obviously don\u2019t know yet if we are in \u2013 I\u2019ll be surprised if not because I can see sometimes in the straight that we are lacking a little bit compared to the Mercedes or even Ford power unit \u2013 I think it will definitely be a help to try and get closer. Whether it will be enough to close the gap, I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n \u201cIt also depends which level we get, if we get it at all, but surely if we get it, it will be a help to get closer.\u201d<\/p>\n Ferrari was fifth and sixth in Friday\u2019s Sprint quali at the Canadian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton 0.361s down on the leading Mercedes driver, with Leclerc a further tenth back.<\/p>\n Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur says he trusts the FIA to implement the ADUO fairly for all involved.<\/p>\n More on ADUO from PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n FIA chief warns ADUO \u2018not a magic bullet\u2019 for underperforming F1 power unit suppliers<\/a> <\/p>\n What is ADUO? The FIA lifeline that could rescue Honda <\/a><\/p>\n Speaking to PlanetF1.com and other media at the Miami Grand Prix, he said: \u201cNow we have to trust the FIA. They will come back to us with numbers soon and we have to rely on this. <\/p>\n \u201cBut at the end of the day, we are speaking about per cent and I know perfectly that it\u2019s not easy to assess but if you have an overall look on the straight-line speed, that it\u2019s yeah, OK<\/p>\n \u201cOn the mechanism, what you can do, the dyno hours and so this is crystal clear. The parameters to consider the performance are also clear from day one and I don\u2019t see any issue on the current situation.\u201d<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n