By: Baku has traditionally been one of the venues teams choose to take power unit change penalties: the circuit offers genuine opportunities to fight back through the field, a fresh engine brings significant advantages, and the Grand Prix arrives at a point when the normal rotation of components already requires new units to be used. It is therefore no surprise that there have been numerous grid penalties during the Azerbaijan weekend.
Eight drivers have already exceeded at least one of the seasonal limits: Norris, Antonelli, Lawson, Albon, Sainz, Stroll, Alonso and Bearman. This year’s regulations allow four ICEs, four turbos, four EXHs, three MGU-Ks, three Energy Stores, three PU-CEs and six PU-ANCs.
F1 2026 power units: the updated situation in Baku
Table updated using FIA documents after FP2 of the Azerbaijan GP
| No. | Team | Driver | ICE | TC | EXH | MGU-K | ES | PU-CE | PU-ANC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81 | McLaren Mercedes | Oscar Piastri | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 01 | McLaren Mercedes | Lando Norris | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| 63 | Mercedes | George Russell | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| 12 | Mercedes | Kimi Antonelli | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| 03 | Red Bull Racing RB Ford | Max Verstappen | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 30 | Red Bull Racing RB Ford | Liam Lawson | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 7 |
| 16 | Ferrari | Charles Leclerc | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 44 | Ferrari | Lewis Hamilton | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 23 | Atlassian Williams Mercedes | Alexander Albon | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 55 | Atlassian Williams Mercedes | Carlos Sainz | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| 41 | Racing Bulls RB Ford | Arvid Lindblad | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 22 | Racing Bulls RB Ford | Yuki Tsunoda | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 18 | Aston Martin Aramco Honda | Lance Stroll | 5 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 8 |
| 14 | Aston Martin Aramco Honda | Fernando Alonso | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 9 |
| 31 | Haas Ferrari | Esteban Ocon | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| 87 | Haas Ferrari | Oliver Bearman | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 27 | Audi | Nico Hülkenberg | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 05 | Audi | Gabriel Bortoleto | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| 10 | Alpine Mercedes | Pierre Gasly | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| 43 | Alpine Mercedes | Franco Colapinto | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 11 | Cadillac Ferrari | Sergio Perez | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| 77 | Cadillac Ferrari | Valtteri Bottas | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Orange = final component available before a penalty | Red = regulatory limit already exceeded at this or other Grands Prix
Ferrari: no margin, but no replacements. Leclerc avoids a penalty
Ferrari’s position remains on the limit, unchanged from Madrid. Leclerc and Hamilton have used their entire available allocation in every category: four ICEs, four turbos, four EXHs, three MGU-Ks, three Energy Stores, three PU-CEs and six PU-ANCs. Following the Monza accident, the ADUO2 engine had to undergo further checks at the factory and was therefore not used in Madrid. The unit returned to the track in Baku practice and showed no issues, dispelling the suggestion ahead of the weekend that a new ICE would have to be introduced and a penalty taken. Leclerc and Hamilton therefore remain within their permitted allocation, albeit with no margin remaining: both have already used every permitted component in the main power unit categories.
Mercedes’ situation is equally delicate. Russell has exhausted his allocation of ICEs, TCs, EXHs, MGU-Ks, ESs and PU-CEs, retaining margin only on PU-ANCs. Antonelli, meanwhile, is already over the limit with his fifth ICE, fourth Energy Store and fourth PU-CE. He served the grid penalty at Monza, while the engine that encountered problems in practice was an older unit in the rotation. There was no need for further replacements and therefore no penalty.
At McLaren, Piastri’s position has changed. The Australian introduced his third Energy Store and third PU-CE in Baku: both remain within the regulations, but from this point neither category, along with the fourth ICE, offers any margin. Norris, meanwhile, remains over the limit with his fourth PU-CE and is on the limit with his ICE and Energy Store.
The most extreme case numerically remains Lawson, who has already exceeded the limit in every category: six ICEs, six turbos, six EXHs, four MGU-Ks, four ESs, four PU-CEs and seven PU-ANCs. Verstappen’s situation is far more straightforward: he remains on three ICEs, turbos and EXHs, while he has exhausted his allocation of MGU-Ks, ESs and PU-CEs. At Racing Bulls, meanwhile, Lindblad fitted his fourth ICE, fourth turbo and fourth exhaust set in Baku, as well as his fifth PU-ANC: all remain within the regulatory allocation.
Aston Martin’s increasingly complex situation
The weekend’s most significant change again concerns Aston Martin. Stroll had already arrived in Baku with a fifth ICE and during the weekend moved on to a sixth turbo, seventh Energy Store, sixth PU-CE and eighth PU-ANC. Alonso, meanwhile, introduced a fifth ICE, fifth turbo and ninth PU-ANC, while also bringing his exhaust count to three. A further change then came on Friday: a seventh Energy Store. His final total is therefore five ICEs, five TCs, three EXHs, five MGU-Ks, seven ESs, six PU-CEs and nine PU-ANCs.
Baku grid penalties
For this Grand Prix, the power unit-related penalties concern the two Aston Martin drivers. Alonso initially received 25 places for his fifth ICE, fifth turbo and ninth PU-ANC: 10 places for each of the first two components and five for the auxiliary component. The subsequent introduction of the seventh Energy Store added a further five places, taking his total accumulated during the weekend to 30.
Stroll, meanwhile, must serve a 20-place penalty for his sixth turbo, seventh Energy Store, sixth PU-CE and eighth PU-ANC, with five places assigned for each additional component.
Azerbaijan GP 2026: complete guide
This is the sixth of our technical features dedicated to the Azerbaijan GP weekend. Alongside the power unit situation are analysis of the new parts seen in the pit lane, the upgrades officially declared by the teams, an examination of tyre degradation and strategies, TV and streaming schedules, and analysis of braking and energy management at the Baku circuit.
All the news, photos, weather, session times and times from the Azerbaijan GP 2026
