Max Verstappen reacts to shock FIA verdict as Red Bull ask questions

Max Verstappen has voiced his surprise at the FIA declaring the Red Bull engine the benchmark in the first ADUO ruling, saying the Milton Keynes-based squad is "confused" by the outcome.

The motorsport governing body is currently reviewing its initial assessment to ensure complete accuracy, and the Dutchman confirmed that his team has opened a dialogue to understand how the conclusion was reached.

As a result, the findings have not yet been announced by the FIA, but Lewis Hamilton's slip of the tongue after the Monaco Grand Prix made it known that Red Bull is the first yardstick of the new-for-2026 Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities programme.

It is now common knowledge that Mercedes HPP is ranked second, and because its internal combustion engine is believed to be between two and four per cent of Red Bull PowerTrains' (RBPT), it will be permitted one upgrade over the rest of the season, and a further update next year, along with subsequent cost cap relief.

Audi, Ferrari and Honda have all been judged to fall outside a four per cent threshold, so will be afforded two development 'tokens' for the rest of the campaign and two more for 2027.

"I think we were all a little bit surprised with that news," Verstappen told media, including RacingNews365, ahead of the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.

"I guess that's why we were talking to the FIA now, to see what happened there, how they came to that conclusion.

"There's so much more to say now. That's what they're looking at."

Little consolation

Despite the positive implication, it is a blow to RBPT, which would have been hoping to upgrade its engine at the first opportunity.

Red Bull's power unit programme, in collaboration with American car giant Ford, is in its infancy, and whilst the fledgling operation has impressed the F1 paddock by outstripping all early expectations, it does not believe it currently has the best engine.

Because ADUO focuses solely on ICE performance and not the power unit as a whole, Mercedes may have the best overall package, but it has still gained through the system.

Red Bull will have chances to equal the score at one of the later ADUO assessment points, but Verstappen feels being branded the benchmark is little consolation at this stage, regardless of what it says about the team's power unit project.

"Maybe from the outside you should say, 'yes, that's amazing', but we just feel surprised, because we don't feel like we are the best," the four-time F1 drivers' champion said.

"It's super impressive what they [RBPT and Ford] have done. If you look at it, we're definitely not the worst out there, and it's super impressive what they have done in such a short time frame.

"Of course, we still have some reliability things, but overall, it's honestly nice to be a part of it, and seeing the drive of the people, and what they want to do. They're never satisfied.

"I'm also never satisfied, but they are as well, and they're equally as disappointed when things don't go right.

"So, yes, in a way, because we are proud, [but also] just a bit confused with suddenly being portrayed as the best, because we don't feel like that."