Mercedes emerges as the big favorite to be beaten in the 2026 Formula 1 season. Even with McLaren closing in at the Miami GP, Andrea Stella still believes in the strength of the Breckley rival.
Read more F1 today: McLaren evaluates controversial wing and FIA explains ADUO
Kimi Antonelli’s victory in the United States keeps the ‘silver arrows’ unbeaten in this championship with four wins in four rounds. In Miami, it is true that the papaya have reduced the gap with Lando Norris’ win in the Sprint and the Briton and Oscar Piastri in second and third in the GP.
But in the eyes of the British team’s manager, Mercedes is still the name of the F1 championship. “I think there are some indications of a different nature, but all quantitative, that show that Mercedes has a faster car,” he explained during the weekend. “In qualifying, we saw that Mercedes had no problems with weight distribution, as happened in the sprint qualifying. And, on average, if we look at the car’s behavior in the corners, they are faster than us,” he added.
Read more Formula 2 studies keeping North America permanently on the calendar
“The corners where they are faster than us are the high-speed ones. So, in sections 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, they gained a lot of ground over McLaren. And in the race, if we look at the end of the first stint and the end of the last, Antonelli reduced the gap in the first and increased it in the last.”
“Therefore, I think all these factors indicate that Mercedes has a faster car. When we were slower, our execution was perfect, as in the sprint qualifying, and their execution was a few tenths below their potential,” concluded the manager.
Read more F1: Ford celebrates FIA decision after Verstappen’s criticism
