McLaren: Marshall points out the key to beating the other top teams

At last, the wait is over, as Formula 1 heads to Melbourne this weekend for the opening race of the 2026 season. Among the favourites are undoubtedly McLaren, the reigning world champions, who will be determined to defend the titles they secured in 2025. However, it will be anything but straightforward. The major regulation changes have reshuffled the competitive order and allowed rival top teams to close the gap.

The Woking-based squad does not consider itself the clear favourite at the dawn of this new era, despite the fact that the MCL40 impressed during winter testing and received positive reviews in Barcelona and Bahrain. Competition from Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull looks fierce, and only from the Australian Grand Prix onwards will we be able to draw the first meaningful conclusions about the true competitive hierarchy in F1 2026.

Stella: “Satisfied with the work done so far”

“We arrive at the opening round of the 2026 season in Melbourne satisfied with the work completed over the past months of testing in Barcelona and Bahrain, with more than 1,000 laps covered across nine days of running. This has allowed the entire team to gain an in-depth understanding of the MCL40’s performance and reliability at this crucial stage of its development.”

Team Principal Andrea Stella then revealed whether further updates will be introduced in Australia, potentially worth a few tenths of a second: “The car we bring to Albert Park will largely feature the same specification seen in Bahrain, with some small aerodynamic refinements. We will continue working on key aspects such as weight reduction and optimising its distribution, as well as unlocking further potential from the power unit.”

There had been speculation about a new, lighter chassis being ready for Australia, but Andrea Stella’s comments suggest that upgrade will arrive later in the season.

“This season is an exciting yet complex challenge and it is fantastic to be going racing again—that is why we are in this sport. We cannot wait to finally lay our cards on the table in Melbourne and see where we stand in the opening races. Everyone at McLaren Mastercard has played an important role in bringing the MCL40 to the track, but the hard work starts now and we are preparing for the task ahead.”

Stella’s words reflect the calm and composed approach McLaren have maintained in recent years, an attitude that has helped the British team return to the very top of Formula 1 and secure three world titles over the past three seasons.

Marshall: “To beat the top teams, power unit management will be crucial”

“As we head to Melbourne for the first race weekend of the 2026 season, after nine days of running between the Barcelona shakedown and pre-season testing in Bahrain, it is clear that these cars are extremely complex to manage both inside and outside the cockpit. The high workload on the drivers means optimising many new tools, and the entire team has worked hard to maximise those learnings, both on track and back in Woking.”

Rob Marshall, McLaren’s Chief Technical Officer and Chief Designer, then explained the extensive work carried out during pre-season testing.

“We dedicated a large part of our test programme to exploring the performance and capabilities of our car, and every lap provided valuable additional understanding of the MCL40. Exploiting the power unit has been a major focus, with several hybrid aspects to optimise, such as when to harvest energy and when to deploy it across the different scenarios a race weekend presents. This required many laps, but we are confident in what we have learned and will continue exploring areas for further performance gains.”

Like Stella, Marshall expressed satisfaction with the work completed over the winter.

“From our side, I would say we are quite satisfied with the base package of the MCL40. I believe we understand the potential of what the car can do and what we want it to do, but we must remain focused and motivated to ensure we continue capitalising on what we have learned as the season progresses and to keep succeeding in our development journey.”

Finally, the British CTO outlined what McLaren must do to challenge Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull at the front and defend the world titles won after last season’s intense and hard-fought battle.

“To be in a position to compete at the front and fight for victory, you need to have done an excellent job in managing the power unit. This is something that must be mastered. Overall, this will be a fascinating season. The development race will be intense, and it has been harder than ever to establish a clear pecking order in testing. I think we are in the leading group together with some very strong competitors such as Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull, but there are many elements throughout the 2026 season that could produce surprises. We cannot wait to get started.”