

McLaren have emerged from the Japanese Grand Prix convinced that Mercedes are not invincible, and the team is now sharpening its focus on where the championship leaders can be challenged during the season hiatus.
Despite securing a podium at Suzuka through Oscar Piastri, lingering questions remain over McLarenâs overall performance level. The weekend underlined both promise and limitation â a snapshot of a team close enough to believe, but still searching for the final pieces.

McLaren acknowledged that Lando Norris was strategically limited during the race, a factor that confined the reigning world champion to fifth place. Even so, the Japanese Grand Prix offered encouragement.
Piastriâs ability to hold his own against George Russell and the Mercedes package, even in the wake of a clear strategy misstep, reinforced a crucial takeaway inside the team: Mercedes can be beaten.
That belief has now become central to McLarenâs development mindset.

Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, McLarenâs technical director of performance, Mark Temple, explained how Suzuka reshaped the teamâs internal outlook.
âHonestly, thatâs very difficult to say. And people who know me will know that I donât like to speculate about those kinds of things too much. I always think itâs better to just focus on whatâs in front of you and what you control, what you can do about it.â
Temple pointed to a simple but powerful fact.
âBut I will say, obviously, in Japan, Mercedes didnât finish first and second. So they have their weak points. Absolutely, theyâre beatable.â
While stopping short of bold predictions, Temple made it clear that McLaren see opportunity rather than inevitability at the front.
âHopefully, we can be the ones who are able to beat them. But I think theyâre certainly not invincible, thatâs for sure.â

Temple also highlighted how the current calendar creates a natural development opportunity.
âFor sure, the fact that thereâs a gap means that itâs a natural place to add components because there are two races that you canât add stuff to. So weâll be aiming to bring some new bits to the car.â
The ambition is clear, even if the outcome remains uncertain.
âHopefully, itâs a big step, but letâs see. I think weâre happy with the development weâre doing. Will it be enough to jump past any teams? I honestly donât know. At this point, itâs all about hope.â

While incremental gains are expected from the power unit, Temple was candid about where McLaren believe the real performance gains will come from.
âFor sure, there will be some power units, performance increments. I would be surprised if those are large.â
Instead, the focus is firmly on the chassis.
âI think the bulk of performance will come from the chassis development because the power units are much more stable⊠itâs harder to add performance to those things in season.â
Temple noted that McLarenâs aerodynamic development remains relatively young, offering scope for continued gains.
âOn the chassis side, we were only able to start working in the aerodynamics in the wind tunnel and CFD at the beginning of last year⊠itâs still F1, thereâs always more performance to find.â

While early fears suggested the new regulations might expose McLarenâs weaknesses, the teamâs current development direction paints a more optimistic picture. There is a belief that meaningful progress is still to come.
The immediate hope is that these efforts translate into a tangible step forward by the time the paddock reaches Miami â a moment McLaren see as a potential turning point in their pursuit of Mercedes.

Heâs a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.
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