Andrea Stella does not believe Mercedes has genuinely run out of the budget needed to continue developing the W17, and expects the Brackley team to respond now that McLaren and Ferrari have closed the performance gap. The McLaren team principal believes Mercedes still has significant potential waiting to be converted from wind-tunnel development into upgrades for the car that races on track.
McLaren arrives at this point in the season after an extremely positive Dutch Grand Prix weekend, highlighted by Lando Norris’s victory at Zandvoort. Stella nevertheless stressed that the result was far from inevitable, with Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren now separated by very small margins and tyre behaviour playing a decisive role.
Andrea Stella explains why McLaren’s Dutch GP win was not straightforward
McLaren has made a significant step during the second half of the season, but Andrea Stella believes the competitive picture remains extremely close. The Woking team’s wider 2026 McLaren development has put the MCL40 back into contention for victories, yet the Dutch Grand Prix showed how small details can still determine the outcome.
“I think today, just like yesterday, the performance between Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren seemed to be very, very close, but there were some additional variables,” Andrea Stella explained.
“I think that on the Medium tyres, or on the softer compounds, we weren’t faster at all. But on the Hard tyres, I think Lando had an additional advantage in terms of understanding how to use that compound.”
The Hard proved particularly difficult to exploit at Zandvoort, with the available grip window changing the competitive order during different phases of the race.
“We could see that this compound was quite tricky today. I think we saw that with Oscar: a very competitive first stint, a very difficult second stint, and the same happened to Antonelli, for example.”
Lando Norris found an advantage on difficult Hard tyre
Tyres therefore played a major role in the Dutch Grand Prix, and McLaren managed to optimise that area better than several of its rivals.
“So I think the tyres today, especially the Hard compound, had a lot to offer,” Andrea Stella continued. “But it wasn’t easy to extract it, and I think in these conditions Lando can perform at his best.”
Norris’s ability to find grip when conditions become difficult is something Stella considers particularly well suited to the reigning world champion’s natural driving style.
“I think that’s his natural territory, in terms of conditions where he can express his natural driving style.”
Stella believes the improvement is the result of both technical progress with the MCL40 and a better understanding of how to exploit the tyres.
“So I think we have improved the car and we’ve improved the exploitation from a driving point of view, or in terms of understanding the tyres. But the fact that we used the hardest compound today, I think that was a small advantage, especially for Lando.”
That progress has developed alongside McLaren’s closer technical cooperation with its engine supplier, with the team previously crediting Mercedes HPP’s contribution to the MCL40’s 2026 performance step.
Monza will test McLaren’s drag and braking weaknesses
After two recent victories, McLaren appears to have re-entered the wider championship conversation, something Andrea Kimi Antonelli also acknowledged during the Dutch Grand Prix weekend. Stella, however, continues to urge caution.
“Beyond everything else, our real approach is to think one race at a time,” the McLaren team principal said. “There isn’t much else you can influence other than maximising the opportunities that come in the future, and the next race will be Monza.”
Hungary and Zandvoort highlighted several of the MCL40’s strongest characteristics, but the Italian Grand Prix will represent a fundamentally different challenge.
“If we consider the demands of Zandvoort and Hungary, and then those of Monza, we find ourselves in a completely different situation.”
Should McLaren remain competitive in Italy, Stella believes the team could begin looking at the rest of the season with considerably greater confidence.
“If we can confirm our improvements at Monza, then the answer to your question will be yes, we can look at the rest of the season with a certain amount of optimism.”
“But first of all we need to go to Monza and see whether our car can perform well on the long straights.”
McLaren knows straight-line efficiency remains a concern
The MCL40 showed difficulties related to aerodynamic drag at Spa and Silverstone, and Monza will place even greater emphasis on straight-line efficiency.
“We know aerodynamic drag is not necessarily a strength of our car, just as braking isn’t always a strength,” Andrea Stella acknowledged.
“There are many things we need to verify ahead of the next race, but so far we can confirm that on high-downforce circuits and with this type of layout, we can fight for victory.”
Monza will therefore be a particularly valuable test. If McLaren can perform on a circuit dominated by long straights and major braking zones, its recent resurgence will look far less dependent on track characteristics.
Stella rejects idea Mercedes cannot afford further W17 upgrades
Andrea Stella also addressed one of the key questions in the current development battle. Toto Wolff has repeatedly indicated that Mercedes no longer has the financial room required to continue extensively developing the W17 under the cost cap.
The McLaren team principal is not convinced.
“I’d like to believe you, but actually I don’t believe you,” Andrea Stella said.
His reasoning is linked to changes surrounding the 2027 power unit regulations and how certain costs will be treated in teams’ financial reporting.
“And I don’t believe it because, thanks to the 2027 power unit regulations, all the teams will have some room for manoeuvre in their cost-cap reporting.”
“And if I’m not mistaken, it’s around three million that can be used in the 2026 reports for the cost-cap calculations.”
For Stella, that detail changes the development picture significantly. Rather than Mercedes being forced to freeze the W17 because of financial constraints, he expects the championship pressure created by its rivals to encourage the team to convert work already carried out behind the scenes into new components.
The question is especially relevant given Mercedes’ changing W17 development strategy for the second half of 2026.
Andrea Stella expects Mercedes to bring more upgrades
“I’m sure Mercedes, having seen that its rivals are raising the level, will now capitalise on the development,” Andrea Stella said.
He believes the version of the W17 Mercedes has developed away from the circuit is already considerably more advanced than the specification currently being raced.
“I’m sure the car they have developed over the winter is much faster than the car they have on track, and now they will want to convert some of this potential into upgrades that reach the actual car.”
“So I’m fairly sure they will have upgrades. Obviously it would be good if that wasn’t the case, but I really don’t want to believe that.”
Stella’s assessment therefore aligns with the reconstruction reported by AutoRacer regarding Mercedes’ development programme for the second half of the season. From McLaren’s perspective, the development contest with Mercedes is far from finished.
Middle East uncertainty has limited impact on McLaren budget planning
Stella was also asked whether uncertainty surrounding the possible rescheduling of races in the Middle East could create difficulties for McLaren’s cost-cap planning.
The Italian played down the financial significance of the situation.
“It’s not a significant impact. In the plans we have, for example you mentioned the power unit, or even the impact on cost reduction, all of this is relatively limited.”
“It creates a certain degree of variability, but it doesn’t substantially change the overall picture. So we remain not only faithful to the plan, but also hopeful that we can race in the Middle East, because that would mean that the situation, which is broader than Formula 1 — the situation internationally and politically — has improved. So that is what we hope for first of all.”
Stella therefore made clear that McLaren’s priority goes beyond the sporting or financial consequences of potential calendar changes. The team’s hope that the events can take place is linked first to an improvement in the wider international situation.
Stella hopes at least one Middle East race can be recovered
Asked about the possibility that the Middle Eastern races may ultimately not be recovered, Stella added that losing both would still not create a major financial problem for the team.
“It would be fantastic for Formula 1 to hold these races, but I also think that if these two races don’t take place, at least one could be recovered.”
“So I hope that, of the remaining races, if two can’t take place, at least one is recovered and that there aren’t any significant repercussions.”
For McLaren, the immediate sporting focus remains much closer to home. Zandvoort confirmed that the MCL40 can now fight at the front under the right conditions, but Monza will ask very different questions of the car.
At the same time, Stella expects Mercedes to respond to the increasingly competitive threat rather than accept that its development budget has been exhausted. The next phase of the 2026 season could therefore become not only a fight on track, but another crucial development race between teams now separated by increasingly narrow margins.
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