Lewis Hamilton's chances of winning Italian GP receive huge boost after Fred Vasseur revelation

Lewis Hamilton has been handed an opportunity to close the gap on Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli at Monza this weekend.

Antonelli will tackle his de facto home Grand Prix for the second time after finishing ninth last year and faces a renewed threat from Hamilton thanks to fresh developments at Ferrari.

The British driver and compatriot George Russell are both 59 points behind Antonelli after 12 rounds.

Hamilton is hunting for his second win of the 2026 season at the Italian GP, where he won five times between 2012 and 2018. He went on to win the championship in four of those seasons and again after his maiden win in Antonelli's much more local Emilia-Romagna six years ago.

With Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc staying steady in the points of late, Antonelli's successive podiums in Belgium, Hungary and the Netherlands were a welcome boost after a frustrating outing behind Leclerc's winning drive at Silverstone in July.

As the F1 family descends on Monza for one of the most beloved races on the calendar this weekend, Hamilton and Leclerc have been armed with some new tricks up their sleeves.

Ferrari bosses have confirmed that they will capitalise on Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) by boosting their power unit in advance of the Italian GP.

Along with Audi and Honda, the Italian outfit are one of the teams entitled to deploy engine upgrades as a result of their deficit versus pace-setters Red Bull.

"On the performance side, we are introducing an updated power unit as part of the development opportunities available under ADUO," revealed team principal Fred Vasseur, per Planet F1.

"It represents a step in the right direction and as we know this year is very much about marginal gains.

"Monza is a demanding circuit and the field is extremely close, and our priority will be to execute every aspect of the weekend as well as possible, from Friday onwards."

Hamilton has previously highlighted the deficiencies of the Ferrari power unit this season. In June, the team's upgrade package helped the seven-time world champion to claim his first GP win as a Ferrari driver when he crossed the line first at Barcelona-Catalunya.

The 41-year-old has also expressed his frustrations over team strategy, notably during and after the last round in the Netherlands in August.

Hamilton finished fifth at Zandvoort, losing ground on Russell and Antonelli as well as seeing race winner Lando Norris trim the gap between fifth and fourth in the drivers' championship standings.

What is F1's ADUO?

Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities were brought in for the first time ahead of the 2026 season.

According to F1: "During specific periods of each F1 season from 2026 to 2030, covering the sport’s latest power unit cycle, governing body the FIA will monitor each manufacturer’s Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) performance, in turn creating an ‘ICE Performance Index’.

"In short, when a power unit manufacturer’s ICE is 2% or more behind the best-performing engine in the Performance Index, ADUO is granted.

"Power unit manufacturers whose Performance Index is at least 4% below the leading ICE will be eligible for two additional upgrades in the current season, and two more during the following season."