2026 Oracle Red Bull Racing F1 Team

[Gillian]

They are competitive! Almost on pole in Monaco with an overweight car is very good.

Facts as far as I can determine from the outside:
+ Good traction/mechanical grip
+ Decent tire wear
+ Strong ICE (apparently)
+ Brakes (Miami race)

+- High speed (bit on an unknown until we hit Spain)

- Tire warmup
- Suspension too stiff (can't ride kerbs well enough)
- Overweight
- Energy management (harvesting/deployment e.g. software and such suboptimal)

I'd still say weightloss alone will get them at the front consistently. But I did expect ADUO benefits...

Spain will be interesting.

[avantman]

Hows that interesting when you already know the winner a week in advance?

[Gillian]

Hows that interesting when you already know the winner a week in advance?

Interesting to see how the car does. If they are competitive to an extent in high speed then I stand by my point they will be winning races this year.

[AR3-GP]

Hows that interesting when you already know the winner a week in advance?

Do you only watch to see who wins?

[Paa]

Is this ADUO stuff already official, or just rumours at this point?

Would be ironic if they started the season with best engine and meh chassis and by the time the chassis comes alive they would end up with a relatively weak engine compared to others.
Anyway, this season is already off. Only realistic goal is to grab some race wins.

[f1isgood]

Mekies is a people pleaser. I am not surprised that he already took another big L after Skinner. Nothing suggests he is going to be a top TP. But some people like him so he will stay.

[f1isgood]

Is this ADUO stuff already official, or just rumours at this point?

Would be ironic if they started the season with best engine and meh chassis and by the time the chassis comes alive they would end up with a relatively weak engine compared to others.
Anyway, this season is already off. Only realistic goal is to grab some race wins.

Autoracer + The Race reporting.

[FNTC]

Its based on sources saying the teams were given the ADUO results before the Monaco race

[gearboxtrouble]

They are competitive! Almost on pole in Monaco with an overweight car is very good.

Facts as far as I can determine from the outside:
+ Good traction/mechanical grip
+ Decent tire wear
+ Strong ICE (apparently)
+ Brakes (Miami race)

+- High speed (bit on an unknown until we hit Spain)

- Tire warmup
- Suspension too stiff (can't ride kerbs well enough)
- Overweight
- Energy management (harvesting/deployment e.g. software and such suboptimal)

I'd still say weightloss alone will get them at the front consistently. But I did expect ADUO benefits...

Spain will be interesting.

I agree with this. Recovering performance would have been difficult if the engine was massively behind. I don't fully buy the ADUO numbers but the engine is already competitive and with another year of development by what is an all star team of powertrains engineers it should be enough to contend for a title. Red Bull has the track record to suggest the chassis deficit will quickly disappear, particularly with such low hanging fruit as being overweight still to tackle. After Mercedes, Red Bull have the best reason to be the most satisfied with how 2026 has gone. It was never supposed to be a title challenge, it was supposed to be a year to prove their own PU was the correct choice. That's mission accomplished and now they can push to challenge for the title a year earlier than expected in 2027 (the proposed ICE bump will help them more than the others).

[AR3-GP]

I agree with this. Recovering performance would have been difficult if the engine was massively behind. I don't fully buy the ADUO numbers but the engine is already competitive and with another year of development by what is an all star team of powertrains engineers it should be enough to contend for a title. Red Bull has the track record to suggest the chassis deficit will quickly disappear, particularly with such low hanging fruit as being overweight still to tackle. After Mercedes, Red Bull have the best reason to be the most satisfied with how 2026 has gone. It was never supposed to be a title challenge, it was supposed to be a year to prove their own PU was the correct choice. That's mission accomplished and now they can push to challenge for the title a year earlier than expected in 2027 (the proposed ICE bump will help them more than the others).

The others get extra money, extra bench time, and can do in-season PU updates next year. 2 for Ferrari and 1 for Mercedes. So if they start 2027 level with Red Bull on the ICE, then they can add up to 2% beyond Red Bull during the season which is worth several tenths.

As you say, what is happening now is the result of people who only look at spreadsheets, and a very narrow idealized figure as opposed to what is happening on the track.

[gearboxtrouble]

I agree with this. Recovering performance would have been difficult if the engine was massively behind. I don't fully buy the ADUO numbers but the engine is already competitive and with another year of development by what is an all star team of powertrains engineers it should be enough to contend for a title. Red Bull has the track record to suggest the chassis deficit will quickly disappear, particularly with such low hanging fruit as being overweight still to tackle. After Mercedes, Red Bull have the best reason to be the most satisfied with how 2026 has gone. It was never supposed to be a title challenge, it was supposed to be a year to prove their own PU was the correct choice. That's mission accomplished and now they can push to challenge for the title a year earlier than expected in 2027 (the proposed ICE bump will help them more than the others).

The others get extra money, extra bench time, and can do in-season PU updates next year. 2 for Ferrari and 1 for Mercedes. So if they start 2027 level with Red Bull on the ICE, then they can add up to 2% beyond Red Bull during the season which is worth several tenths.

As you say, what is happening now is the result of people who only look at spreadsheets, and a very narrow idealized figure as opposed to what is happening on the track.

Everyone will get some allowance because the 27 rules are changing (tbd how much). The FIA wants it, RBPT and Mercedes want it and there will be some sort of compromise that boost fuel flow. Its better to have the best ICE when the ICE is becoming a bigger part of the overall PU balance.

[AR3-GP]

I agree with this. Recovering performance would have been difficult if the engine was massively behind. I don't fully buy the ADUO numbers but the engine is already competitive and with another year of development by what is an all star team of powertrains engineers it should be enough to contend for a title. Red Bull has the track record to suggest the chassis deficit will quickly disappear, particularly with such low hanging fruit as being overweight still to tackle. After Mercedes, Red Bull have the best reason to be the most satisfied with how 2026 has gone. It was never supposed to be a title challenge, it was supposed to be a year to prove their own PU was the correct choice. That's mission accomplished and now they can push to challenge for the title a year earlier than expected in 2027 (the proposed ICE bump will help them more than the others).

The others get extra money, extra bench time, and can do in-season PU updates next year. 2 for Ferrari and 1 for Mercedes. So if they start 2027 level with Red Bull on the ICE, then they can add up to 2% beyond Red Bull during the season which is worth several tenths.

As you say, what is happening now is the result of people who only look at spreadsheets, and a very narrow idealized figure as opposed to what is happening on the track.

Everyone will get some allowance because the 27 rules are changing (tbd how much). The FIA wants it, RBPT and Mercedes want it and there will be some sort of compromise that boost fuel flow. Its better to have the best ICE when the ICE is becoming a bigger part of the overall PU balance.

Just like the aero development, when you are standing still the others are going forwards. If the others have more money or more time, they are going further forwards than you. Mattia Binotto already warned that benefit of the ADUO was enormous

Toto Wolff said all the PUs are in the ballpark in April. Now today it comes that Mercedes receives ADUO. Do you think he will remember this?

"And it needs to be very clear that whatever decisions are being made, whichever team is granted ADUO, that any such decision may have a big impact on the performance picture and on the championship, if not done with absolute precision and clarity and transparency.

"It needs to be clear that gamesmanship hasn't got any place here, but it needs to be with the right spirit here that the FIA acts upon an ADUO.

"The teams will have their performance pictures and, as it seems for me, there's one engine manufacturer that has a problem and we need to help. And then all the others are pretty much in the same ballpark.

"I would be very surprised, actually, and disappointed if ADUO decisions that were done would come up with any interferences into the competitive pecking order as it stands at the moment."

viewtopic.php?t=32427&start=1125

[AR3-GP]

Mekies suggested that Red Bull had planned for an ADUO update in the 2nd part of the year.

“The regulations force you to pick your moment. So you will have to try to group them and to make them into sizeable enough [steps]. Realistically, I don't think you will see it in the first part of the season, at least for us. But certainly in the second part of season, you will try to shoot before having the '27 window, where you can, anyway, upgrade as well,” said Mekies.

https://www.gpblog.com/en/breaking-news ... power-unit