Can McLaren really challenge Mercedes? Oscar Piastri: “We are not as strong as in 2025, but I think we can”
The biggest positive surprise of the Miami Grand Prix weekend was undoubtedly McLaren. After enduring a difficult start to the 2026 Formula 1 season, the Woking-based team suddenly emerged as a genuine contender again thanks to a heavily upgraded version of the MCL40.
During the opening rounds of the championship, particularly between Melbourne and Shanghai, McLaren struggled badly for competitiveness and reliability. On one dramatic occasion, neither of the two cars even managed to start the race, highlighting just how complicated the early phase of the campaign had become for Andrea Stella’s team.
However, the situation looked completely different in Florida. McLaren arrived in Miami with a significantly revised and lighter car package that immediately transformed the team’s performance level. The upgraded MCL40 dominated the Sprint event and then went on to seriously threaten Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s attempt to secure a third consecutive Grand Prix victory in the main race.
In a curious twist of fate, Miami has once again become the starting point for McLaren’s charge toward the front of the Formula 1 field. The British team is now trying to close the gap to championship leaders Mercedes, a squad with which McLaren also shares one of its greatest strengths: the Mercedes power unit.
Oscar Piastri reacts to McLaren’s sudden improvement
The key question now is whether the progress shown in Miami will be enough for McLaren to consistently challenge Mercedes from the Canadian Grand Prix onward. Oscar Piastri attempted to answer that crucial question after the chequered flag in Miami and expressed cautious optimism about the team’s direction.
“Yes, I think so,” Oscar Piastri explained. “Obviously, we will have to wait and see what Mercedes brings because this weekend they did not introduce many major upgrades and yet, both in qualifying and in the race, they were probably still at a similar level to us, if not slightly quicker over a single lap.”
The Australian driver also admitted that McLaren has not yet returned to the dominant form it displayed during the 2025 Formula 1 season, although he believes the team is moving steadily in the right direction.
“We are definitely not back to the position we were in last year yet, but we are getting closer,” Oscar Piastri added. “With more upgrades coming, we should be in a good position.”
The comments from Oscar Piastri underline the growing confidence inside McLaren following one of the team’s strongest weekends in recent memory. The Miami package appears to have solved several of the balance and efficiency problems that limited the MCL40 earlier in the season, particularly in high-speed sections and tyre management during long runs.
Still, the Australian driver remains aware that Miami may not provide the full picture of the competitive order for the rest of the championship. Formula 1 teams often perform differently depending on track characteristics, weather conditions and tyre behaviour, meaning McLaren’s true level will become clearer over the next few races.
“We still need to see where we stand at some different circuits,” Oscar Piastri continued. “And I think that especially in the Sprint this weekend, achieving a one-two finish purely on pace was actually a pretty big surprise for us.”
That result demonstrated just how effective the latest McLaren development package was in Florida. The team had expected the upgrades to deliver a meaningful performance gain, but the scale of the improvement exceeded even their internal expectations.
“Things are working well,” Oscar Piastri said. “We expected the McLaren upgrades to be a good step forward and they were. Hopefully they will be just as effective again in Canada.”
Even so, McLaren knows that Mercedes is unlikely to remain static. While the Silver Arrows introduced only limited updates in Miami, the Brackley-based outfit is also preparing an important upgrade package for the Canadian Grand Prix weekend in Montreal.
That means the battle between Mercedes and McLaren could become one of the defining storylines of the next phase of the 2026 Formula 1 season. With Andrea Kimi Antonelli continuing to impress at Mercedes and McLaren finally unlocking the potential of the MCL40, the fight behind the leading positions could soon become significantly tighter.
“Mercedes did not bring many upgrades this weekend,” Oscar Piastri concluded, “and they also have an upgrade package planned for Canada, so we will have to wait and see how much performance it gives them.”
As Formula 1 heads toward Montreal, anticipation is already building for what could become a fascinating technical and strategic showdown between two Mercedes-powered teams aiming to establish themselves as the strongest challengers in the championship fight.
The sudden resurgence of McLaren in Miami has injected fresh life into the 2026 season, suggesting that the developmental race between the Mercedes-powered frontrunners is only just beginning. While the MCL40 showed elite pace in the Sprint, Piastri’s measured comments highlight a realistic awareness that the Silver Arrows likely have more performance in reserve for the upcoming European leg. For McLaren, the challenge is no longer just about reliability, but about proving they can sustain this upward trajectory on the varied high-speed layouts of Montreal and beyond.
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