Ferrari may have had a poor start to the season, but they are throwing everything bar the kitchen sink at trying to catch rivals Mercedes, winners of the first four races. First they introduced a new aerodynamic update in Baku. Now they’ve brought forward a power unit upgrade planned for Canada in time for this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix.

The race in Barcelona, the curtain raiser for the European leg of the season, traditionally sees teams bring their first major aerodynamic package updates of the year. The close proximity of the venue to most of the teams' factories means they can push deadlines tighter to get parts to the track.

Traditionally, engine manufacturers wait until Canada - race seven of the calendar - to introduce a new power unit, as any extra power will be of benefit there. It is also a third of the way through the season and therefore the natural point to fit a fresh engine, of which they are allowed three per year without penalty.

So it’s quite a move from Ferrari to bring a new specification power unit to Spain, two races ahead of schedule, in addition to more chassis improvements.

A power unit change this early means Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc must now last 17 races with two units of the latest specification or revert to spec one, which is likely, for less-power dependent races such as Monaco, Hungary and Singapore.