Zak Brown believes that McLaren has all the ingredients required to return to winning ways and challenge both Ferrari and Mercedes at the front of Formula 1. Despite a more complicated start to the 2026 season than expected, the confidence within the Woking-based team remains strong, with leadership determined to turn early setbacks into future success.
The opening phase of the campaign has not gone according to plan for the British team. Oscar Piastri has yet to take part in a race, while Lando Norris managed to secure a fifth-place finish in Australia, offering a limited but important boost in points. However, it was McLaren CEO Zak Brown who chose to send a clear message to Ferrari and Mercedes, underlining the team’s ambitions despite the early difficulties.
Team principal Andrea Stella has pointed out that McLaren is progressively improving its understanding of the Power Unit, a key factor under the current regulations. Once this aspect is fully unlocked, the MCL40 is expected to deliver a significant step forward in overall performance. In qualifying sessions, McLaren’s pace appears close to Ferrari, suggesting strong one-lap potential. However, during races, the gap tends to increase, highlighting an area where the team is actively focusing its development efforts. The main objective in Woking is to improve race-day performance and consistency, ensuring that the car can maintain competitiveness over longer stints.
Zak Brown motivates McLaren after early 2026 struggles
McLaren CEO Zak Brown addressed the team’s engineers and staff with a clear and confident message, directly targeting Ferrari and Mercedes as the benchmarks to beat. The two leading teams remain the ultimate reference point for the reigning champions, but Brown expressed full belief in McLaren’s ability to return to the top of Formula 1 in the near future. He also emphasized that ongoing discussions about battery performance and other sensitive aspects of the current regulations will eventually fade once the team starts winning again.
“We have the two best drivers in the world, we have the best racing team in the world, we have the best culture in a racing team, so let’s keep going. Let’s go to Japan, let’s race these cars. We will all keep doing what we do,” said Zak Brown.
“I can’t wait for the moment when we will win races. I guarantee you that when we win the next race, which will come sooner rather than later, we won’t be thinking about high-speed corners, batteries or anything else, but we will be thinking: ‘We are winning Grands Prix’,” the McLaren CEO added.
Despite a disastrous race weekend that saw a double retirement before the start, Andrea Stella highlighted the progress made compared to Melbourne. The most important takeaway was the amount of data collected, particularly regarding the Mercedes power unit. This growing understanding is expected to play a crucial role in future performance gains. Attention now turns to the next round in Japan, where McLaren hopes to demonstrate further improvements and take another step in the right direction in its pursuit of Ferrari and Mercedes.
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