McLaren leads in a crucial area ahead of 2026 | F1 Mexico City GP. At the 2025 Mexico GP, McLaren demonstrates superior cooling efficiency.

The Mexico snapshot

The Mexico City event highlights how well individual cars manage cooling, coping with the 25% reduction in air density caused by the altitude. Teams respond by opening vents in the bodywork, starting with the side grilles on the engine cover. In this context, the McLaren stands out with significantly smaller cooling inlets compared to, for example, Ferrari or even Mercedes, which uses the same power unit as the papaya team. The MCL39 also features a narrower, flatter rear vent, adding to the envy of its rivals.

However, compared to competitors, McLaren evacuates more heat through the lower bodywork openings near the rear suspension arms. This partly explains the small size of the engine cover grilles. Nevertheless, the world champions achieve outstanding cooling efficiency, combining aerodynamic gains from a tighter bodywork package with reduced cooling drag—the resistance caused by air passing through radiators and internal ducts.

Importance for the future

The MCL39’s advanced cooling system is a source of pride for McLaren under Andrea Stella, who highlighted this at Monte Carlo: “Our engineering department has made significant efforts to improve the cooling system, which is completely different from last year. It is far more efficient, allowing us to run tighter bodywork when temperatures rise. This translates into a significant gain in milliseconds at certain temperatures compared to last season.”

The technical advantage McLaren has built in this area will be crucial next year, even though the car’s architecture will be dramatically different. The hybrid power unit, three times more powerful, will require almost nine times the current thermal dissipation, placing even more emphasis on the cooling system. The benefits of a more efficient system will be numerous, including the ability to use smaller radiators in the context of relentless weight reduction. Equally important will be the reduction in energy consumption due to lower aerodynamic drag, helping manage energy—one of the main challenges identified for 2026.