'Everyone just looks deflated': FIA could trigger much-needed change for 'depressed' team outfit in Canada

Formula 1 is returning to Montreal, Canada.

Following George Russell's 2025 victory, this year's race is shaping up to be a breezy weekend for a dominant Mercedes outfit on the grid.

After last year's bungle between McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri where they crashed into each other, the two will be looking to right their wrongs and collect vital championship points to stay in contention.

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A newly adopted sprint format in Montreal could hand them an extra eight points in their weekend tally if they cross the line first in the sprint race.

However, the biggest talking points heading into the Canadian Grand Prix stem from new engine leeway granted to struggling teams, an unconventional local strike and shifting driver ambitions outside of the F1 glamour.

Much 'ADUO' about nothing

First up is ADUO, which stands for 'Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities'.

During specific periods of each F1 season from 2026 to 2030, the FIA will monitor each manufacturer's Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) performance to create an 'ICE Performance Index'.

In short, when a power unit manufacturer's ICE falls two per cent or more behind the best-performing engine in the Index, ADUO is granted.

There are three periods during the 2026 season when power unit manufacturers' ICE performance will be monitored and the Canadian Grand Prix will be the final race of the first performance period.

If the ICE is seen to be performing two per cent less than than Mercedes (most expect the team to be the benchmark), teams will be notified and can change particular things before the Barcelona race.

"That's not to underestimate it, but a manufacturer will still need to make the best engine in order to win," FIA's Nikolas Tombazis said.

"It's not a magic bullet, or like the FIA is handing out brownie points to somebody who's behind. It simply provides them with leeway to develop their power unit within the framework laid out by the Technical Regulations."

'Depressed' Aston Martin set for some success?

Aston Martin is struggling, there is no way around that fact.

The outfit currently sits dead last in the constructors' standings with zero points.

F1 pundit Karun Chandhok recently gave a grave review of the team's atmosphere.

"This was the year that Aston were supposed to be going from the midfield to being a top five and, for me, it's really difficult to watch, just seeing that whole team, they're all working incredibly hard, but everyone just looks deflated," he said.

"Anyone I speak to in green just looks depressed and deflated. It's a long old year for them isn't it."

However, a recent report claims that behind-the-scenes work could set them up well for Montreal.

The engine and gearbox have been running on Honda's dyno in Japan during the break from Miami and the fine-tuning of the electronics at Sakura is expected to allow for a quantum leap in Montreal.

The team is also a shoe-in for the ADUO rulings with the Honda engine so far off the Mercedes power unit.

A bizarre strike set for the Canadian weekend

Off the track, the Sex Work Autonomous Committee in Montreal has organised a strike starting on May 23, which coincides with qualifying and the sprint race in Canada.

Noting that the grand prix weekend is "the most lucrative period of the year for our boss," the dancers released a statement outlining their core demands.

These include the abolition of the bar fee (which strippers are currently required to pay to perform in clubs), official worker status and safe working conditions.

"The reality is that we're clearly trapped in an employer/employee power dynamic, and the bar fee model benefits only the bosses," the statement added.

"Indeed, they have every incentive to bring in as many dancers as possible each night to maximize their profits. As for our safety, our employers show very little concern and leave us to handle it on our own."

F1 sabbaticals more likely in the paddock

Max Verstappen's foray into endurance racing, specifically the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, has prompted other world champions on the grid to highlight their desire to race outside of Formula 1.

With the vocal admonition of Formula 1's demanding schedule at the start of the 2026 season, we could see more drivers take sabbaticals in other motorsport categories.

Historically, it is rare for active F1 drivers to compete elsewhere due to the gruelling calendar.

Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for Toyota while still racing in F1 in 2018, and Audi's Nico Hülkenberg won Le Mans in 2015 as a one-off entry with Porsche.

But 2025 world champion Norris discussed his aspirations beyond the cockpit of his F1 car.

"I still feel like I want to go and try other things," he said on McLaren's YouTube channel.

"Do Le Mans, now McLaren are doing Le Mans, so maybe go and do that at some point.

"But I don't know. I'm still young, so I've not thought of everything just yet. But, you know, in the future hopefully I have kids and they get into racing or something and then I can live the story again."

McLaren CEO Zak Brown also teased the idea of both Norris and teammate Piastri being involved in the endurance program.

"I think we are very open-minded," said Brown.

"Who doesn't want to win Le Mans? I've talked to Lando and Oscar about it, and they've said they'd love to go race Le Mans. That's cool, right? I think all these motorsports converging are great.

"We love sportscar racing [at McLaren].

"We're the only team to have won the Triple Crown, it'd be cool to go for it again. We're impressed with the rules, the competition."

Brown continues to fight two-tier teams

McLaren's CEO has been busy in the last couple of weeks.

Brown renewed his fight against A-B teams in Formula 1, writing a letter to FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem to urge the sport to abolish the two-tier teams, particularly in light of the 24 per cent stake currently up for grabs in Alpine.

As few teams in Formula 1 ever look to sell shares, the Alpine stake has become a massive talking point.

In his letter, Brown laid out the sporting, technical, financial and governance misgivings he holds regarding sister-team setups, stating these "now need to be addressed as a matter of priority."

It wasn't a specific shot at Mercedes as Brown has been banging this drum since he took charge at McLaren in 2016, with the previous target of his crosshairs being the relationship between Red Bull and its sister team, Racing Bulls.

But as the landscape of Formula 1 has dramatically changed since Red Bull's investment nearly 20 years ago and Brown wants to stop teams from ganging together to monopolise junior driver programs and race endeavours.