Oscar Piastri doubts McLaren can fix MCL40 before 2027

Oscar Piastri believes McLaren is unlikely to find a meaningful fix for its MCL40 before the end of the 2026 Formula 1 season, with six races remaining. The Australian says the car is close to its current limit, leaving little prospect of a breakthrough before the campaign concludes.

Piastri said the team’s recent work, including at Malaysia, had helped him understand how to bring the car closer to what he needs. But that progress has not changed his outlook for the short term: he does not expect a sudden solution this year.

Piastri says progress has not made the car comfortable

The 2026 regulations have brought major changes to the cars, while the tyres are also different. Piastri said he is continuing to make progress adapting, but the car still does not feel as comfortable as he would like.

He described McLaren’s performance as sharply inconsistent: the car can be well off the pace or very fast, with little apparent middle ground. Piastri acknowledged that he does not know what causes those swings.

That uncertainty leaves the team with a difficult closing stretch. Piastri’s comments on McLaren’s key weakness offer another look at the challenges he has faced with the car this season, but his latest assessment is that a full answer is unlikely to arrive before 2027.

Norris has extracted more than the car offers

Piastri also credited team-mate Lando Norris, the reigning champion, with producing qualifying laps that have put the car on pole despite its underlying limitations. Norris has described driving the MCL40 as mentally draining, while team principal Andrea Stella has said the fundamental problems will not be resolved until McLaren’s 2027 car.

The scale of the task is reflected in the standings. Piastri is seventh on 138 points and has yet to win a grand prix this season. McLaren sits third on 339 points, only seven ahead of Red Bull before this weekend’s United States Grand Prix.

The title picture makes the remaining races especially important for McLaren. Red Bull’s position is covered in our guide to how it can pass McLaren in the standings at the US Grand Prix. For Piastri, however, the immediate aim appears to be getting the most from a car he does not expect the team to transform this year.