> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.the-race.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # 'ADUO for teams' plan to be discussed by F1 - URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aduo-for-teams-to-be-discussed-by-f1/ - Published: 2026-11-14T08:47:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-14T08:48:13.000Z - Description: Sweeping changes to cost cap rules look set to become a key area of discussion on Monday when an “ADUO for teams” proposal is debated at the Formula 1 Commission - Author: Jon Noble - Tags: Formula 1, Business, #primary_homepage_feature Sweeping changes to cost cap rules look set to become a key area of discussion on Monday when an “ADUO for teams” proposal is debated at the Formula 1 Commission. [As first revealed by The Race,](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/formula1-cost-cap-fix-f1-williams-2027-2028/) Williams team boss James Vowles has tabled the idea of a spending catch-up mechanism to help F1 teams escape what he thinks has become a “cost cap trap”. Vowles argues that while the cost cap has done a great job making all teams financially viable, it has also locked in legacy advantages that make it difficult for smaller teams to catch up with the bigger squads. He is pushing for a sliding scale catch-up system within the cost cap that allows the teams outside of the top four to spend more. It would mean those teams that finish bottom of the standings get greater financial freedom to help them close the gap to squads at the front. Vowles’ proposal has been added to the agenda of next week’s F1 Commission meeting, with it becoming formally known as “ADUO for teams”. This is in reference to the ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) that exists for engine manufacturers - who are given extra spending allowances, dyno hours and homologation opportunities if their power unit is adrift of the benchmark. Vowles had originally hoped to get enough backing for the plan for it to get voted through the F1 Commission and into the rulebook as early as next year. For that to happen, it would have required support from the FIA, FOM plus six of the current 11 teams for what is known as a supermajority. But backing from five others appears unlikely, with only Cadillac, Alpine, Aston Martin and Audi supportive so far. Haas is against because it is not near the current cost cap limit so is not limited on spending, while Racing Bulls team boss Alan Permane has said he does not back the concept. The divided opinion in the paddock does not mean that the idea is dead, though, as support from four teams in total would be enough to get it into play for 2028. That would be early enough for it to then help shape things for the next rules era that is due to start in 2030 or 2031. Vowles said recently that a compromise solution remained possible - especially with support from the FIA and F1 over his plans - but implementation may not be swift. “What's more important to me, perhaps, is I have the support of the FIA and Formula 1 behind it,” he said. “I don't think we have an accurate enough direction that we need to take it in, that is right for the sport, which is still being discussed behind the scenes. “What I can say is the support is there. “I don't think it's going to happen overnight. As I previously mentioned, what I want to make sure is that we get it right by the next regulation change, which is a little way off, so we have some time. “But my suspicion on it is you'll see more and more being discussed over the next few months in that regard.” But Vowles’ idea is not the only cost cap change that is under the spotlight, because these discussions look set to trigger arguments about wider reform. ## Parts versus people F1’s top teams have little to gain from the idea of an “ADUO for teams”, as the biggest beneficiaries would be those squads hoping to close them down. But that does not mean the big squads are satisfied with how the current cost cap rules work, as they too are seeking changes to the regulations - to help F1 stay competitive. One of the hottest topics among them is the way that current cost cap limits are impacting the retention of staff and the ability of F1 as a whole to keep hold of the brightest engineers. Teams operating under the cost cap are forced to keep a lid on salaries, and that has left many F1 teams fighting a losing battle to retain talented personnel who are getting lured away by big-money offers from tech companies. There are also many stories of staff being able to earn better money in other racing series outside of F1 because the cost cap has put a ceiling on wages so much. The issue has increased in importance amid a global cost-of-living crisis, with F1’s cost cap increase tightly linked to inflation so teams are unable to lift salaries to respond to what staff need. A strong argument that is now gathering some pace is for the cost cap to evolve and separate spending on parts and spending on people. As has long been the case with F1’s rules, only the three highest-paid personnel within an organisation are exempt from being included within the cost cap. There were discussions in the past about expanding this to include up to 300 staff, but it is thought that this would be too wide a net and would effectively make the cost cap ineffective. Speaking at the Brazilian Grand Prix last weekend, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said that his squad had long proposed a mitigating mechanism - but this was shot down. He told Sky F1: “I would have loved to have a little bit of an uplift. The idea that we had was that with more junior personnel that joined the team, we would have more allowance to pay them better and not \[having\] the salaries suppressed in the first five, six, seven years. “So we've pitched that to the FIA to give us an allowance, not for more front wings but an allowance for salaries to come up a little bit because the cost cap suppresses all of that. But obviously that didn't score a lot of brownie points.”