Ferrari’s ADUO 2 engine upgrade delivered the expected performance improvement at Monza, but Oliver Bearman’s assessment has underlined why the new power unit specification cannot transform competitiveness on its own. According to the Haas driver, the aerodynamic development fitted to the car produced a substantially larger step than the additional engine performance.
The comparison is particularly relevant after the Italian Grand Prix because Monza is one of the Formula 1 calendar’s most power-sensitive circuits. Its long straights provided an important reference for Ferrari’s latest engine work, yet the weekend reinforced a broader technical reality: improving the SF-26 package requires progress in several areas rather than relying solely on additional horsepower.
Ferrari ADUO 2 engine delivers progress at Monza
The second development step permitted through the ADUO programme introduced several changes to Ferrari’s power unit. These included an increase in power, modifications to the turbo and software optimisation, all aimed at reducing one of the weaknesses that had affected the package before Monza.
Ferrari’s development work had already placed particular emphasis on the turbo, with the ADUO 2 compressor and turbo changes forming an important part of the Monza specification. The broader objective was not simply to chase a headline horsepower number, but to improve the effectiveness of the complete power-unit package.
The upgrade met its technical expectations and moved Ferrari forward. However, it was not enough to produce an immediate jump to the performance level of the leading benchmarks, and the ADUO 2 data gathered at Monza showed that further progress is still required.
Bearman’s wider assessment was similarly measured. The Ferrari-affiliated driver indicated that the latest engine alone would not be decisive in the championship picture and that another step forward remained necessary.
Haas comparison reveals where the bigger performance gain came from
Haas provided an especially useful reference during the Italian Grand Prix because only one of its cars received the new Ferrari engine specification. That created an opportunity to separate, as far as possible, the benefit of the power-unit development from the improvement generated by the team’s updated aerodynamic package.
For Oliver Bearman, the difference was significant. He explained that the performance step provided by the engine was considerably smaller than the improvement obtained through the aerodynamic update.
Bearman went further when evaluating the overall effect on the car, estimating that the aerodynamic development produced a gain around two to three times greater than the extra performance delivered by the engine.
That comparison is notable precisely because it came at Monza. On a circuit dominated by long periods at high speed, an increase in power would normally be expected to make its influence particularly visible. Instead, Haas’s experience demonstrated how strongly aerodynamic development and overall efficiency can still shape lap time even at one of Formula 1’s most power-dependent venues.
Why the ADUO 2 engine has not changed Ferrari’s competitive hierarchy
Ferrari did not expect the second ADUO development to erase its entire power-unit deficit to Mercedes and Ford in a single update. The objective was at least to reduce that disadvantage substantially, and the Monza results suggest that target was achieved only in part. There was a tangible improvement, but horsepower remains an area in which further work is needed.
The outcome therefore does not mean the upgrade failed. ADUO 2 performed broadly in line with the technical objectives established for it, but the development was never intended to act as an instant solution to every limitation of the Ferrari package. The distinction is important when assessing the SF-26 power-unit development, where outright engine output is only one part of the overall performance equation.
The same principle applied to Ferrari’s wider Monza programme. The Scuderia combined its power-unit work with changes elsewhere on the car, including aerodynamic solutions intended to improve efficiency for the demands of the Italian circuit. The complete Ferrari Monza upgrade package therefore involved much more than the introduction of ADUO 2 alone.
Ferrari still needs power, aerodynamics and efficiency to move together
The central lesson from Monza is that Ferrari still has ground to recover in engine performance, but additional power by itself will not determine how competitive the project becomes. The effectiveness of the power unit has to be combined with aerodynamic development and the overall efficiency of the SF-26.
Bearman’s comparison with Haas illustrates that relationship particularly clearly. The new engine specification brought a measurable benefit, but the aerodynamic update generated the greater performance improvement. Even on a circuit where engine output carries unusual importance, the complete car remained more influential than one development area in isolation.
For Ferrari, that means ADUO 2 should be viewed as one part of a continuing development process rather than the final answer to the gap ahead. The Scuderia must continue improving its power output while simultaneously extracting more from the aerodynamic platform and the overall efficiency of the car, areas followed throughout our Ferrari technical analysis coverage.
The longer-term engine programme is already looking beyond the current specification. Ferrari is targeting 2027 with two further upgrades planned to increase power, continuing the work begun through the ADUO development path. Monza showed that the latest step has produced gains, but it also demonstrated why the next stage cannot focus on horsepower alone.
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