The FIA has altered Formula One's sporting regulations to prevent customer teams running year-old power units next season.
This year Manor has run 2014-spec Ferrari engines and there have been suggestions Red Bull could do run 2015-spec power units next year as it attempts to find a solution to its engine crisis. However, an amendment to Article 23.5 of the sporting regulations was published by the FIA on Tuesday which will require all power units on the grid to be identical to the ones homologated by the FIA at the start of the season.
The re-written regulations come after the FIA tightened up a loophole in the regulations that allowed for in-season updates this year. Under the new rulebook, engine manufacturers will have to submit their updated 2016 power units for homologation on February 28 and will not be allowed to bring performance updates for the rest of the year. That will mean spending all of the available 25 tokens for the 2016 season by the end of February. Thereafter changes to the power unit will only be permitted for reliability, safety, cost-saving purposes.
Article 23.5 states that power units used by customers will have to be the same as the ones used by works teams - as the regulations originally intended - although software and grades of fuel and lubricants may differ between teams. As a result, the current situation, whereby the Mercedes and Ferrari works teams are running different specifications to their customers, will not be possible.
However, the regulations could still change if the teams agree unanimously to change the regulations. Honda, Renault and Ferrari have made clear that they want in-season performance updates to continue next year amid concerns a February homologation deadline will only serve to lock in Mercedes' advantage.