At a glance
- Audi plans to put both cars on its new specification for FP2 after Allan McNish said the opening practice comparison showed a performance benefit.
- The Austin package is smaller than the Baku update, with development attention increasingly directed towards 2027.
- Singapore’s points haul has lifted confidence, while Freddie Slater is due to get FP1 opportunities in Mexico and Brazil.
Audi intends to extend its United States Grand Prix upgrade to both cars after a split-specification test in Friday practice produced encouraging evidence. Racing director Allan McNish said the data and lap times supported the change, giving the team an immediate development gain to pursue as its wider attention shifts towards 2027.
Speaking in the FIA’s Friday press conference on 23 October, McNish described a clear benefit from the new package. He did not quantify the improvement or identify its individual components, so the initial assessment establishes Audi’s confidence in the update rather than a measured gain against its rivals.
A smaller package earns a wider rollout
Audi ran the new parts on one car in FP1 while keeping the other on the specification used over the preceding races. McNish said the Austin changes were modest compared with the package introduced in Baku, but the comparison was persuasive enough for the team to plan the same specification on both cars for second practice.
That next session was scheduled for 16:00–17:00 local time on Friday, according to Formula 1’s published weekend timetable, which remains subject to change.
The positive test follows a Singapore weekend that McNish credited with restoring confidence. Audi scored its first Sprint points there and added points in the Grand Prix, responding to the frustration of losing tenth place on the final lap in both Baku and Sepang.
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Results lift morale as development priorities move on
McNish linked that competitiveness to a change inside the team. Scoring points and fighting towards the final stages of qualifying had improved morale, he said, while the factory’s planning now extended through 2027, 2028 and beyond.
There is a substantial development task behind those ambitions. In the FIA’s Miami press conference on 1 May, Mattia Binotto identified the power unit as Audi’s most obvious performance deficit and listed staffing, infrastructure and tools among the areas needing work. That was an early-season assessment; the Austin comments provide no updated measurement of the engine gap.
Asked about further developments for the current car, McNish indicated that only smaller details were likely. His assessment was that teams were concentrating more heavily on next season, placing the Austin package within the closing stages of this year’s development work.
Audi’s preparations also include opportunities for its development drivers. McNish confirmed planned FP1 appearances for Freddie Slater in Mexico and Brazil, saying the priority was to learn the car and carry out the sessions sensibly. He praised Slater’s talent, work ethic and integration into the team, framing the outings as an early step in a hoped-for Formula 1 career.
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