F1 TECH: Who has taken fresh power unit components for Montreal?

F1 Grand Prix, GP Canada, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve

A host of drivers has taken fresh power unit components for this weekend's Canadian Grand Prix, including Ferrari drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. F1Technical's senior writer Balazs Szabo delivers his latest analysis.

The 2026 Formula One season has introduced the most far‑reaching transformation of power‑unit regulations since the hybrid era began, fundamentally altering both the architecture of the engines and the way teams must manage them across a record‑length calendar.

With the Canadian Grand Prix marking the eighth round of the championship, several teams have elected to fit fresh components to their cars as they navigate the new reliability landscape.

The revised power units retain the familiar hybrid structure but feature a dramatically rebalanced relationship between combustion and electrical power.

Each unit consists of six homologated elements: the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), the Turbocharger (TC), the Exhaust system (EXH), the Motor Generator Unit‑Kinetic (MGU‑K), the Energy Store (ES) and the Control Electronics (CE). The removal of the MGU‑H has placed far greater emphasis on the MGU‑K, which now operates with a higher‑capacity battery and a simplified turbo architecture.

This shift has increased both the thermal and electrical loads on the system, making reliability management more critical than at any point in the hybrid era.

To maintain competitive balance and prevent excessive component swapping, the FIA has imposed strict usage limits. Each driver may use four ICEs, four Turbochargers, and four Exhaust systems, alongside three MGU‑Ks, three Energy Stores, and three Control Electronics units over the course of the season.

These allocations must sustain performance across more than twenty races, meaning that every component change carries strategic weight.

Against this backdrop, several teams have opted to introduce fresh power‑unit elements for the Montreal weekend. The combination of long straights, heavy braking zones and repeated acceleration phases at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve places significant stress on both the combustion and electrical systems, making Canada a common venue for scheduled component rotation.

With the 2026 units still in their first competitive cycle, teams are also using early‑season races to refine reliability baselines and gather data on degradation patterns.

For the Internal Combustion Engine, fresh units have been installed for Isack Hadjar, Arvid Lindblad, Sergio Pérez, Oliver Bearman, Esteban Ocon, Valtteri Bottas and Liam Lawson.

For the Turbocharger, new components have likewise been fitted to the cars of Isack Hadjar, Arvid Lindblad, Sergio Pérez, Oliver Bearman, Esteban Ocon, Valtteri Bottas and Liam Lawson.

For the Exhaust system, new assemblies have been installed for Isack Hadjar, Arvid Lindblad, Sergio Pérez, Oliver Bearman, Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas.

For the MGU‑K, fresh units have been taken by Lance Stroll, Fernando Alonso, Esteban Ocon, Oliver Bearman, Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Pérez and Alexander Albon.

For the Energy Store, new batteries have been fitted for Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Franco Colapinto.

For the Control Electronics, fresh CE units have been installed for Gabriel Bortoleto and Franco Colapinto.

Finally, for the Power‑unit ancillary components, new elements have been taken by Isack Hadjar, Arvid Lindblad, Sergio Pérez, Oliver Bearman, Esteban Ocon, Liam Lawson, Lewis Hamilton and Alexander Albon.