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Defending champions McLaren are preparing a significant mid-season push, with plans to introduce a "completely new car" across the upcoming Miami and Canadian Grands Prix. The Woking-based outfit is aiming to close the performance gap to current championship leaders Mercedes as the 2026 season intensifies.
McLaren’s campaign began on the back foot, hampered by an underdeveloped car following a grueling 2025 season that saw the team locked in a Drivers' Championship battle until the final race. This, coupled with the complexities of integrating a new power unit from long-time supplier Mercedes, left the team struggling for pace early on—a situation highlighted by the team's failure to start the Chinese Grand Prix with either Lando Norris or Oscar Piastri.
However, the team has shown clear signs of recovery. A breakthrough in understanding their package was evident in Japan, where Oscar Piastri fought for the win before ultimately finishing second to Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.
The unexpected five-week break in the calendar, caused by the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, has provided McLaren with a vital window to refine their development. Team Principal Andrea Stella confirmed that the team has utilized this time to focus on a substantial aerodynamic upgrade package.
“In our intent, there was always the idea to deliver a completely new car – especially from an aerodynamic upgrades point of view – for the North American races so we could keep up with this plan,” Stella explained at a media day in Woking. “Obviously, the fact that the calendar has been changed sort of helped a little bit, like I'm sure helped all the other teams that could work more streamlined towards upgrading the car rather than being busy with racing.”
While the upgrades are extensive, Stella remains pragmatic about the competitive landscape. “Across Miami and Canada, we will see an entirely new MCL40. Again, I would like to stress that this is what I would expect of most of our competitors so [it is] not necessarily going to be a shift in the pecking order, it will be effectively just a check who has been able to add more performance within the same time frame.”
Currently sitting third in the Teams' Championship, 89 points behind Mercedes, McLaren is also making strides in optimizing their power unit integration. Stella noted that collaboration with HPP has been instrumental in improving their simulation tools and overall preparation.
“At the start of the season a deficit might have existed for the natural consequence of being a customer team when the programming was so pushed... but now later in the season I think we have filled this gap, and we should have all the tools that are required to extract the most out of the power unit,” said Stella.
With a more competitive showing in Japan as a foundation, the team is optimistic that the upcoming technical revisions will allow them to challenge Mercedes and Ferrari more consistently as the season progresses.
He’s 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.