Andrea Stella, McLaren team principal, clarified his statements regarding Mercedes’ advantage in the 2026 Formula 1 season, highlighting that the team is not complaining, but rather seeking to better understand the power unit supplied by the German manufacturer.
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“First, I want to clarify that when I spoke about the exploitation of the power unit, I was referring to HPP (Mercedes – High Performance Powertrains), in the sense that we need to work together with them,” Stella told the press.
He reinforced that the complexity of the Mercedes engine requires constant learning from customer teams: “It is a very complex power unit. When you are in the position of a customer team, you need to learn. It is quite natural. I have never seen anything like it in power units in previous seasons. So, you have to go through a learning process. We are grateful to HPP for the support they give us. They provide us with the necessary information, but somehow you need to run on track and learn,” he added.
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Stella also highlighted the natural difference between works teams and customer teams: “Obviously, when you are a works team, it is normal for there to be more integration. There is no protected intellectual property, you work as a single entity. So, it is fair that there is a small advantage from that point of view. We are not complaining about that. Our only focus is to learn as quickly as possible and exploit the power unit in the best way,” he completed.
McLaren, therefore, remains focused on developing knowledge and maximizing the performance of the power unit supplied by Mercedes, without entering into public disputes over possible competitive advantages.
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