Red Bull share pecking order prediction as F1 awaits FIA intervention

Laurent Mekies believes Mercedes has established a clear advantage at the start of F1's latest generation of power units, as the paddock waits for the first verdict from the FIA's new Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) programme.

The system has been introduced under the new power unit regulations to prevent the type of prolonged engine dominance seen in the early turbo-hybrid era.

It evaluates each manufacturer's internal combustion engine performance at three points during the season.

The first ADUO review window opened after the fifth round of the campaign, in Canada on 24 May, with the motorsport governing body expected to communicate its findings within two weeks of that race.

Any decision could have major implications for Red Bull, which sits fourth in the constructors' championship with 57 points after a difficult start to the season.

The fledgling power unit project, in collaboration with Ford, however, has impressed since F1 pre-season. The partnership has far outstripped early expectations to the extent that it may not receive an uplift from the first ADUO results at all.

Asked whether the praise surrounding Red Bull Ford Powertrains' debut campaign was flattering, and where he believes the fledgling operation stands relative to its rivals, Mekies said the scale of the project should not be overlooked.

"I can only give you what we think is the pecking order," the Red Bull team principal told media, including RacingNews365.

"We think the guys, Red Bull Ford Powertrains, did an extraordinary job in getting us on the grid in the position to fight from a project that was effectively a field at the back of Red Bull Racing a few years ago.

"So that has been nothing short of phenomenal."

Mercedes out front

Mekies went further by outlining where he believes each manufacturer stands in the early running, with Mercedes at the front of the field.

The German marque powers four teams and eight cars: its works outfit, McLaren, Alpine and Williams. That gives it the largest footprint on the grid and, if Mekies' assessment is accurate, a meaningful advantage across a considerable part of the field.

Under ADUO, any manufacturer found to be 2 per cent or more behind the leading ICE qualifies for additional homologation upgrades and extra cost cap allowance, scaled according to the size of the deficit. The system does not penalise the leading manufacturer, but gives trailing operations more room to develop.

That makes the first FIA communication especially important for RBPT, which is competing in its first season as a power unit operation after Red Bull moved away from Honda for the new regulations cycle.

Whether the ADUO data confirms Mekies' reading of the pecking order, and whether Red Bull Ford Powertrains falls inside the 2 per cent threshold that would trigger additional development allowances, is now one of the key questions of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend, with the verdict expected imminently.

"Now, the next question, you look at your gap to the best competition, and today we think the pecking order is Mercedes in terms of powertrain ahead of the field, and it means eight cars, so it is very significant," Mekies added.

"We think behind them, there is a group where we see us, Ferrari, Audi, don't ask me to quote the numbers because it will be gaming, but we certainly see a consistent gap compared to the Mercedes-Benz-powered cars.

"And then it's probably fair to say that we read Honda further back."