Andrea Stella believes that McLaren can still achieve significant results in the second half of the 2026 Formula 1 season, despite the heavy blow suffered in the title battles. The team principal highlighted the recent evolution of the MCL40 and set the car’s development as a priority to try to reduce the gap to rivals.
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After 11 rounds, the British team is only in third place among the teams, with 220 points, against 379 for Mercedes and 307 for Ferrari. Among the drivers, Lando Norris is fifth, with 128 points, 91 less than leader Kimi Antonelli, while Oscar Piastri is seventh, with 92.
The problems at the start of the season were worsened by reliability issues and the disadvantage in car development. McLaren itself acknowledged that it needed to catch up with the main competitors, but the situation began to change in the first half of the championship, when new updates brought the MCL40 closer to the front of the grid.
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One of the main evolution packages arrived at the Hungarian GP, including a new floor. In the same round, the 2025 F1 champion achieved his first GP win of the season, a result that reinforced Stella’s perception of the team’s potential for a comeback. “This is a difficult question, but there is a very clear answer. If we can continue the season as we did in Budapest, I think we can still achieve a lot,” he said.
“For that, we need to keep advancing with the development of the MCL40 and ensure that we are faster than our rivals, who certainly are not standing still, in this race within the race, which is the competition for updates,” he added.
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