This was expected to be the track where McLaren would be exposed to Red Bull’s attacks, especially with the much-discussed technical directive in play. None of that materialised, with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris delivering a dominant papaya one-two in qualifying, highlighting yet another strength of the MCL39. Max Verstappen remains the best of the rest and awaits the race, where the updated Mercedes must prove it can manage tyre degradation better than in previous outings. Meanwhile, Ferrari is showing timid progress on the Pirelli compounds after recalibrating expectations following Monaco.
The directive is here, but invisible
Some thought it could be a game-changer, but qualifying in Barcelona confirms the technical directive on front wings has had virtually no effect. McLaren, thought to be most vulnerable given their extended use of flexible materials, appears unaffected. “In terms of aerodynamic resistance I’d say the impact is zero, we’re talking decimal points,” said Andrea Stella. “As for balance, the car is slightly more pointed in the fast sections and a bit more understeery in the slow ones. But the influence is so small, it’s within the normal lap-to-lap variation.”
So it wasn’t pre-race gamesmanship but a straightforward conclusion reached already in Imola: “When we tested this wing at Imola, if we hadn’t told Lando it was different, he wouldn’t have noticed. Even when we tried it in the simulator and offline, there were barely any numerical differences.” Drivers report similar feedback: more oversteer at high speed, a bit of understeer in slow corners — nothing major. Lewis Hamilton summed it up best: “What a waste of money. Literally nothing changed.”
Another strength of the MCL39
The directive hasn’t stopped McLaren’s momentum, and in Catalonia Oscar Piastri put three tenths on the field — a gap that surprised even McLaren. In Barcelona, the reigning champions had expected a threatening Red Bull, which had managed to take pole and/or win on other high-speed tracks like Suzuka, Jeddah and Imola. But it’s not just about cornering speed, as Andrea Stella explained: “Even if the speed range is similar to other circuits, the length of the corners helped us today.”
“One of Spain’s features is that, unlike Imola, the corners are very long. On these long corners, the MCL39 seems to replicate some of the traits of its predecessor. Even as we improved the car, we retained some of its aerodynamic strengths.” Mid-corner stability, once a McLaren weakness, has turned into a strength thanks to recent development. Early signs were already visible in Norris’s dominant performance at Zandvoort last August and the composure of both MCL39s through Suzuka’s Spoon Curve.
In Barcelona, the main qualifying limitation remained the temperature of the rear tyres, an area where the papaya cars excel. The only issue was the return of porpoising — last seen in Miami — which itself indicates a car generating high downforce. On Saturday, the only fight for the McLarens was internal, with Oscar Piastri coming out on top by nailing his lap.
Mercedes improves, Ferrari too
Max Verstappen and Red Bull hit the minimum target by securing the top-chasing spot after trying many different setups during practice, even at the cost of race simulations. George Russell tied him for fourth with a Mercedes featuring a new floor — after the Imola setback, the team finally sees positive signs from its upgrades. “They weren’t massive upgrades, but the feeling was definitely good,” reported Antonelli. The Italian was just 0.25s behind his teammate, bouncing back after a tough Imola-Monaco double, helped by the return of harder tyres after struggling to extract performance consistently from the C6 compound.
Antonelli made the most of his sole Q3 attempt, while Charles Leclerc had regrets. The Monegasque took full responsibility for his choice not to wait until the end of the session to go out, preferring to leave time for a second attempt in case of error — but in doing so, he missed out on the track evolution as temperatures dropped by 7°C in 10 minutes. The top Ferrari was thus Lewis Hamilton, five tenths off pole. The Briton was reasonably pleased with the SF-25, which had been undriveable on Friday due to what turned out to be floor damage.
The most encouraging sign for Ferrari is its apparent step forward in utilising new tyres after struggling in Miami and Imola — helped in part by warm temperatures and the harder compounds. “We obviously struggled at the last few races, but in the last two… In Monaco we improved, but we didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves,” admitted Hamilton. “We hoped to see the same here, so that’s a positive.”
Looking ahead to the race
All eyes are now on the race. The long run to Turn 1 will be crucial, with McLaren needing a better start than in Monza last September, aiming to keep Verstappen at bay. The numerous race simulations during all three free practice sessions suggest a Grand Prix with high degradation. The hard tyre is prone to sliding and overheating, making a two-stop strategy the most likely.
The race will reveal how much each team compromised qualifying setup and outright pace to protect the tyres — especially the front-left. Contrary to recent trends, Sunday could diminish McLaren’s clear Saturday advantage. “We saw some very competitive race sims, particularly from Ferrari and Max Verstappen,” said a concerned Andrea Stella. Rivals will cling to any hope of halting the charge of the world champions — the true winners of a day that was expected to unfold quite differently.
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