2026 McLaren Mastercard F1 Team

[Macklaren]

https://www.mclaren.com/racing/formula- ... =2026-news

Launch 09.02.26

The first time in years (ever?) the launch is not in Woking/MTC/UK? Wonder if this is new ownership related

[swifteddie1]

https://www.mclaren.com/racing/formula- ... =2026-news

Launch 09.02.26

The first time in years (ever?) the launch is not in Woking/MTC/UK? Wonder if this is new ownership related

That would be my guess as well. I would imagine they will do the Barcelona test with a camo livery then on a very basic car.

[Macklaren]

https://www.mclaren.com/racing/formula- ... =2026-news

Launch 09.02.26

The first time in years (ever?) the launch is not in Woking/MTC/UK? Wonder if this is new ownership related

That would be my guess as well. I would imagine they will do the Barcelona test with a camo livery then on a very basic car.

I think all 11 cars in Barcelona are going to be black. Maybe except RBR.
Looks like McLaren will do a basic garage/pitlane reveal before a BAH filming day before the second test. They have also announced a large public event in the UK on Feb 22, which will likely be the "real" launch with all the fanfare

[SilviuAgo]

The first time in years (ever?) the launch is not in Woking/MTC/UK? Wonder if this is new ownership related

That would be my guess as well. I would imagine they will do the Barcelona test with a camo livery then on a very basic car.

I think all 11 cars in Barcelona are going to be black. Maybe except RBR.
Looks like McLaren will do a basic garage/pitlane reveal before a BAH filming day before the second test. They have also announced a large public event in the UK on Feb 22, which will likely be the "real" launch with all the fanfare

Based on my info the event in London, at Apollo on Feb 22, is only for Zak and Lando, to get in touch with the fans and has nothing to do with MCL40:
https://www.eventim.co.uk/event/victory ... iliate=HAL

Also according to some sources FIA is pushing teams to use camo livery for Barcelona test, so the "real" liveries to be presented outside Barcelona event.

Planetf1.com reports that Formula 1 teams are asked to use camo liveries during 2026 Barcelona tests, iunless they've already been launched
Barcelona tests are the first of the pre-season, and is behind closed doors. It's meant to offer teams the opportunity to test their cars and find any major technical issue away from the public.
As such, there is no real incentive for teams to show their liveries in Barcelona already, and F1 asked specifically not to, so that fans get their first look at the new colours in Bahrain

[Sbrillo88]

That would be my guess as well. I would imagine they will do the Barcelona test with a camo livery then on a very basic car.

I think all 11 cars in Barcelona are going to be black. Maybe except RBR.
Looks like McLaren will do a basic garage/pitlane reveal before a BAH filming day before the second test. They have also announced a large public event in the UK on Feb 22, which will likely be the "real" launch with all the fanfare

Based on my info the event in London, at Apollo on Feb 22, is only for Zak and Lando, to get in touch with the fans and has nothing to do with MCL40:
https://www.eventim.co.uk/event/victory ... iliate=HAL

Also according to some sources FIA is pushing teams to use camo livery for Barcelona test, so the "real" liveries to be presented outside Barcelona event.

Planetf1.com reports that Formula 1 teams are asked to use camo liveries during 2026 Barcelona tests, iunless they've already been launched
Barcelona tests are the first of the pre-season, and is behind closed doors. It's meant to offer teams the opportunity to test their cars and find any major technical issue away from the public.
As such, there is no real incentive for teams to show their liveries in Barcelona already, and F1 asked specifically not to, so that fans get their first look at the new colours in Bahrain
https://scontent.fotp3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/ ... e=696806FC

idk If we'll see all black cars. Rb will not unveil the 2026 car, just the livery. Ferrari will unveil the car so they could have already the final livery.

Planetf1.com reports that Formula 1 teams are asked to use camo liveries during 2026 Barcelona tests, iunless they've already been launched

If this is true is highly possible what I just said

[Sbrillo88]

I think all 11 cars in Barcelona are going to be black. Maybe except RBR.
Looks like McLaren will do a basic garage/pitlane reveal before a BAH filming day before the second test. They have also announced a large public event in the UK on Feb 22, which will likely be the "real" launch with all the fanfare

Based on my info the event in London, at Apollo on Feb 22, is only for Zak and Lando, to get in touch with the fans and has nothing to do with MCL40:
https://www.eventim.co.uk/event/victory ... iliate=HAL

Also according to some sources FIA is pushing teams to use camo livery for Barcelona test, so the "real" liveries to be presented outside Barcelona event.

Planetf1.com reports that Formula 1 teams are asked to use camo liveries during 2026 Barcelona tests, iunless they've already been launched
Barcelona tests are the first of the pre-season, and is behind closed doors. It's meant to offer teams the opportunity to test their cars and find any major technical issue away from the public.
As such, there is no real incentive for teams to show their liveries in Barcelona already, and F1 asked specifically not to, so that fans get their first look at the new colours in Bahrain
https://scontent.fotp3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/ ... e=696806FC

idk If we'll see all black cars. Rb will not unveil the 2026 car, just the livery. Ferrari will unveil the car so they could have already the final livery before the tests begins.

Planetf1.com reports that Formula 1 teams are asked to use camo liveries during 2026 Barcelona tests, iunless they've already been launched

If this is true is highly possible what I just said

[AR3-GP]

Relevant for Mclaren.

MotorsportMagazine

- McLaren's big fear: why factory power could prove crucial in F1's 2026 reset

With more factory-backed teams than customers and a ruleset that rewards integration, 2026 could mark Formula 1's return to a manufacturers' championship

..But the unintended consequence is that chassis teams dependent on a third-party supplier will face an uphill task. Every interaction between power unit and aero will become more decisive, and nothing defines a works team more than the ability to design these elements as a single product rather than two separate systems bolted together.

Why the 2026 rules may amplify factory advantages

Two pillars define the 2026 chassis-power unit relationship: active aero and energy management. Both reward integration and close cooperation between design departments, and expose the limits of customer structures.
...
Active aero compounds this effect. Cars will alternate between two aerodynamic modes, forcing teams to design cars whose cooling and bodywork work just as well in both. Works teams can design their power unit cooling, battery placement and exhaust routing with those transitions in mind. Customer teams must instead adapt their aero philosophy to a power unit conceived around someone else’s priorities.

Energy deployment is also no longer an isolated performance tool. In 2026 it becomes structurally linked to aero behaviour, with electric power compensating for drag reduction and shaping how aggressively teams can run low-drag modes. That places battery cooling and MGU-K integration at the heart of aerodynamic performance – an area where factory teams hold a decisive coordination advantage.
...
There is also a strategic dimension: factory teams can plan power unit improvements with specific chassis upgrades in mind, while customers must adapt to whatever update cycle the manufacturer chooses. In a tightly regulated environment with limited testing, that developmental synchronicity will matter.

link

Energy deployment is also no longer an isolated performance tool. In 2026 it becomes structurally linked to aero behaviour, with electric power compensating for drag reduction and shaping how aggressively teams can run low-drag modes.That places battery cooling and MGU-K integration at the heart of aerodynamic performance – an area where factory teams hold a decisive coordination advantage.

This part is interesting and iirc it was something that Emag dismissed in the RBR topic a few weeks ago.

[Emag]

I dismissed it because it’s dumb. As a customer you don’t get some factory sealed unconfigurable power unit as a product. All customers come up with their own deployment mappings that best fit their respective cars. This will not change in 2026.

His other points are about the integration. He is overplaying them slightly but they’re not things I disagree with. It entirely depends on how “involved” McLaren really is and how early they have known about the physical dimensions of the whole power unit. The rest is about them doing their job and doing it better than Mercedes if they want to beat them.

There is no doubt McLaren is at a disadvantage compared to Mercedes though. At least starting the season. Remains to be seen what gaps they will have to deal with, and if they’re able to put themselved into a fight within 2026 or not.

[AR3-GP]

I dismissed it because it’s dumb. As a customer you don’t get some factory sealed unconfigurable power unit as a product. All customers come up with their own deployment mappings that best fit their respective cars. This will not change in 2026.

The customers don't develop deployment mappings. Mercedes develops maps with built in toggles for what they are assuming they would need to do at the track. The customers are then given the PU and told to play within Merc's sandbox. Nothing can be done that is not compatible with the hardware design.

[Emag]

I dismissed it because it’s dumb. As a customer you don’t get some factory sealed unconfigurable power unit as a product. All customers come up with their own deployment mappings that best fit their respective cars. This will not change in 2026.

The customers don't develop deployment mappings. Mercedes develops maps with built in toggles for what they are assuming they would need to do at the track. The customers are then given the PU and told to play within Merc's sandbox. Nothing can be done that is not compatible with the hardware design.

You can go ahead and check all the races from the last couple of years. The deployment mappings between Mercedes, Williams and McLaren are not the same. It’s not really a complicated thing you have to develop. You just decide where/when and how much battery you want to deploy in a lap. With tools/software that they no doubt get by Mercedes.

As part of the reg shift in 2018, factory teams were forced to provide the same hardware and software to the customers that they use themselves. They’re the same as in there’s no secret modes that only the factory team can use, but within that power unit platform, each team decides how and where to deploy the energy in a lap. I don’t know what a customer could possibly need that would not be compatible with the PU hardware in this regard.

[_cerber1]

As far as I know, each client is assigned an engineer from the engine department who is responsible for adjusting the engine maps.

[bauc]

If I recall correctly, Zak said Mclaren were involved early on with Merc on the new PU layout ect?..... so yes there will be some disadvantage at start, but I do not except a repeat of 2014.

[CjC]

One could argue that it’s better to be a customer of the best engine than the works team of an inferior PU and worse still a customer of an inferior PU. Which of course, could still be Mclaren.

[swifteddie1]

One could argue that it’s better to be a customer of the best engine than the works team of an inferior PU and worse still a customer of an inferior PU. Which of course, could still be Mclaren.

This. The Alpine is a perfect example of this from a few years ago. One of the reasons they are switching to Merc.

[MTudor]

https://www.mclaren.com/racing/formula- ... =2026-news

Launch 09.02.26

The first time in years (ever?) the launch is not in Woking/MTC/UK? Wonder if this is new ownership related

I wish they could have lauched the car on 3.02,on my birthday