McLaren CEO Zak Brown delivered a motivational speech to his team after a disappointing start to the 2026 Formula 1 season. The team holds third place in the constructors' standings with 18 points from two grands prix. Brown expressed confidence in an imminent return to race wins.
McLaren, fresh off two consecutive constructors' titles in 2024 and 2025, has faced challenges adapting to Formula 1's new regulations featuring smaller, lighter, and more complex cars in 2026. Pre-season testing in Bahrain saw the team post the third-fastest time and exceed 2,000 km of running, but results have faltered since. In the Australian Grand Prix opener, Oscar Piastri crashed before the race, while Lando Norris finished fifth. A week later at the Chinese Grand Prix, both drivers retired due to technical issues before the start, resulting in a double did-not-start (DNS) and a meager 18 points total after two grands prix and one sprint. Norris trailed George Russell's winning Mercedes by nearly a minute in Melbourne, and in Chinese qualifying, Piastri and Norris managed only fifth and sixth places, about half a second off the Mercedes benchmark. Team principal Andrea Stella attributed struggles to insufficient aerodynamic load on the MCL40, despite sharing the Mercedes power unit with leaders. Stella noted that qualifying times reveal the aero deficit clearly, as tyre management is well-understood. Addressing staff this week in a video shared on social media, Brown urged focus on the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix. 'We've got to get ready for Japan. We've got the two best drivers in the world, we've got the best racing team in the world, we've got the best culture in a racing team,' he said. Brown added, 'I'm looking forward to when we win races – I guarantee you when we win our next race, which will be sooner rather than later, we're not going to be thinking about speed traces or batteries or anything. We're going to be winning grand prix races.' McLaren drew on past resilience, having recovered from a slow 2024 start to dominate later that year and in 2025. After Japan, a break follows due to cancelled Bahrain and Saudi races, with the next event in Miami in May offering development time.
