FIA is prepared to clarify the ADUO decision to Red Bull.

      "It wasn't the image we believed we had."

      Red Bull's conflict with the FIA regarding the disputed ADUO engine compensation system is anticipated to escalate with a high-profile meeting at Silverstone. As reported by De Telegraaf, FIA officials are set to meet with Red Bull's top management this weekend to clarify why the governing body determined that the team's internal combustion engine is the most powerful on the grid, making it ineligible for ADUO development concessions.

      According to the report, FIA personnel spent eight days evaluating Red Bull's evidence but did not modify their evaluation. CEO Oliver Mintzlaff and co-owner Mark Mateschitz are expected to participate in the initial meeting, with a follow-up discussion involving team principal Laurent Mekies planned for the next week.

      The report also indicated that some figures in the paddock believe Red Bull was less politically adept than its competitors in preparing for the ADUO process, observing that Christian Horner and Dr. Helmut Marko - now both absent - had previously wielded significant influence off the track.

      Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur acknowledged that he, too, was taken aback by the FIA's initial rankings. "Of course, I was," he told Corriere della Sera when asked about Mercedes qualifying for ADUO support despite winning seven of the first eight races. "It wasn’t the image we thought we had. However, the system is not based on results but on the calculation of the internal combustion engine's power output, and we didn't have access to all the data the FIA could use to assess those parameters. So yes, we were surprised," Vasseur added. "Only Red Bull was more surprised than we were."

      The controversy revolves around the fact that ADUO eligibility is exclusively determined by combustion engine performance, rather than the complete power unit, meaning Mercedes qualified despite the prevailing belief in the paddock that it already possesses the most robust overall package due to its electrical systems.