Ferrari arrives at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix at Monza with an updated SF-26 Power Unit specification, officially confirmed by the Scuderia. Yet the discussion surrounding the upgrade has largely centred on one question: how much extra horsepower has Ferrari found with its latest engine development?
That may not be the most important question. Formula 1 in 2026 is no longer decided solely by the output of the internal combustion engine. The efficiency of the complete Power Unit – from the V6 and turbocharger to the MGU-K, battery, control electronics and energy-management software – can be just as important to overall performance.
Does Ferrari really have a new engine at Monza?
The first distinction concerns the terminology being used around Ferrari’s Monza upgrade. Ferrari has confirmed that it will introduce an updated Power Unit specification for the Italian Grand Prix, developed through the opportunities available under the ADUO system.
That does not mean Maranello has designed a completely new V6 from scratch. The FIA regulations place strict restrictions on the development of the combustion side of the Power Unit, with the basic engine architecture, cylinder layout, many materials and numerous components subject to tight homologation rules.
Further development is possible through the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities system, commonly known as ADUO, as well as through authorised changes made for reliability reasons. Ferrari qualified for additional development opportunities because its internal combustion engine was measured more than four per cent behind the benchmark during the FIA assessment periods. The complete FIA ADUO rankings and Ferrari’s position help explain why Maranello has been permitted to continue developing its 2026 unit.
In other words, Ferrari can evolve the existing design, but that is very different from completely redesigning the engine.
Why Ferrari SF-26 horsepower figures can be misleading
Since the beginning of the season, considerable attention has been given to reports that Ferrari has recovered 10, 12 or 15 horsepower through its Power Unit development.
It is an easy way to describe progress, but it risks providing an incomplete picture of what determines performance in a modern Formula 1 car.
The SF-26 does not depend solely on the maximum output of its internal combustion engine. The complete Power Unit consists of several interconnected elements:
- the internal combustion engine, or ICE;
- the turbocharger;
- the MGU-K;
- the Energy Store, or battery;
- power electronics;
- energy-management software.
Every part of that system can contribute to lap time. Ferrari’s broader Monza upgrade package combines ADUO 2 with changes to the SF-26, making the Italian Grand Prix an important opportunity to judge the interaction between Power Unit performance and the car’s overall efficiency.
Power Unit software is a crucial development area in F1 2026
One aspect receives comparatively little attention: Power Unit software. In the 2026 Formula 1 regulations, managing the available electrical energy throughout a lap is a crucial part of extracting performance.
The software controls how and when the MGU-K deploys electrical power, how much energy is recovered under braking, how that electrical output is distributed around the lap, how the battery is managed and how torque is blended between the internal combustion engine and electric motor.
Two cars with identical maximum power figures can therefore perform very differently simply because one uses its available energy more efficiently.
That is why focusing exclusively on V6 horsepower tells only part of the story. Ferrari’s challenge with the SF-26 is not simply to create more peak power, but to ensure that power remains available where it produces the greatest lap-time benefit.
Are all Formula 1 batteries effectively the same?
No. The regulations impose strict limits on areas such as the Energy Store’s permitted energy, dimensions and weight, but this does not mean every manufacturer uses an identical battery solution.
Power Unit manufacturers can work on several aspects of battery performance and management, including:
- thermal management;
- battery cooling;
- internal resistance;
- charging and discharging strategy;
- the Battery Management System.
On a circuit such as Monza, where the demand for electrical energy remains extremely high across the lap because of the long full-throttle sections, improved battery efficiency can provide a meaningful advantage.
The MGU-K has the same power limit but not necessarily the same efficiency
There is a similar misconception surrounding the MGU-K. The Formula 1 regulations impose the same maximum MGU-K power limit on every Power Unit manufacturer, but that does not mean every system operates with exactly the same level of efficiency.
Its effectiveness can depend on several factors, including electrical losses, cooling, power electronics and software management. Small improvements in efficiency can result in more usable energy being available over the course of a lap.
That energy can then translate into tenths of a second, particularly at circuits where sustained deployment becomes a major performance factor. Ferrari’s hybrid performance has therefore become a significant part of the wider technical analysis of the SF-26 during the first season of Formula 1’s new regulations.
Mercedes compression ratio debate and FIA checks
Another major technical talking point during the 2026 season has concerned a suspected Mercedes advantage linked to the engine compression ratio.
The FIA did change its inspection procedures during the year, adding further controls concerning how the compression ratio is assessed under operating conditions.
However, no public ruling has established that Mercedes gained an illegal Power Unit advantage, nor has any decision been announced that proves the change in inspection procedures altered the competitive order between manufacturers.
It is therefore important to distinguish between technical speculation surrounding potential solutions and information that has actually been confirmed.
Is Ferrari really using a ‘hot cylinder head’ concept?
Recent technical speculation has also suggested Ferrari could be using a cylinder-head design intended to operate at particularly high temperatures.
For now, however, there has been no independent confirmation of such a solution. Ferrari has not publicly confirmed the concept, while no FIA documentation or publicly available technical evidence has established that the SF-26 Power Unit uses this particular approach.
It should therefore be treated as technical speculation rather than an established fact.
If Red Bull has the strongest Power Unit, why does it not dominate?
This question helps illustrate the central point. A fast Formula 1 car is created through the balance between aerodynamics, chassis performance, suspension behaviour, tyres and Power Unit efficiency.
Even if one team were assumed to have the most competitive Power Unit, that would not automatically guarantee the fastest car. Aerodynamic drag, downforce, mechanical performance and tyre behaviour all influence how effectively the available power can be converted into lap time.
Energy management and overall efficiency can therefore matter just as much as the peak output of the internal combustion engine.
Monza will be the real test of Ferrari’s new Power Unit
The Italian Grand Prix is perhaps the best circuit on the calendar to evaluate Ferrari’s latest work. Monza’s long straights and extended periods at full throttle put both combustion performance and electrical energy deployment under particularly heavy scrutiny.
Several areas will provide useful indications of how much the SF-26 has genuinely improved:
- top speed;
- electrical energy usage;
- MGU-K deployment;
- any reduction in lift-and-coast requirements;
- the behaviour of the new ADUO 2 specification.
Those performance indicators will reveal considerably more about the effectiveness of the update than individual horsepower estimates. Ferrari has already shown that Power Unit efficiency can influence where the SF-26 performs best, with energy recovery emerging as an important factor in the car’s performance profile.
The real Ferrari SF-26 gain could come from efficiency
The major misunderstanding surrounding Formula 1’s 2026 Power Units is the tendency to continue judging them primarily through the output of the combustion engine.
A modern Formula 1 Power Unit is a complex system in which the battery, MGU-K, software and control electronics have an enormous influence on final performance. Ferrari could therefore have achieved a meaningful step forward without fundamentally transforming the V6 itself.
Monza will provide the first major opportunity to determine whether Ferrari’s updated SF-26 Power Unit has improved primarily through greater overall energy efficiency rather than simply through a higher headline horsepower figure.
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