2026 McLaren Mastercard F1 Team

[LionsHeart]

And is there any other that is airing the rest of the hours?

I'm watching the text broadcast. From autosport.

[Darth-Piekus]

Whats the total lap count for Piastri? Autosport tends to reset lap number after every pit stop.

[crapu7]

Whats the total lap count for Piastri? Autosport tends to reset lap number after every pit stop.

https://www.formula1.com/en/timing/f1-live

[Darth-Piekus]

We should be over 50 or 60 laps by now. I see lots of set ups and long runs with all kinds of tyres.

[SilviuAgo]

We should be over 50 or 60 laps by now. I see lots of set ups and long runs with all kinds of tyres.

Nobody is live on tv with this 1st Bahrein session cause is a FIA&Teams decision not to broadcast full days. Maybe for the next session 18-20 to have full live TV coverage.
Teams are so secret this period that fans joked about Australian GP being held with closed doors.
Look at Audi sidepods, nothing look like the "livery show" or Barcelona.



Coming back to McLaren, Ted Kravitz speaking on Sky Sports News:
"McLaren have done something different in that they have waited as late as they could to put what is pretty much the first-race aero package on their car.
"Then that is what they are going to Melbourne with whereas others such as the Mercedes, the Ferrari, the Aston Martin are going to change."

[SilviuAgo]

It's still very preliminary, but obviously this year there's more attention to what happens on the straight compared to last year, where speed in the corners was especially important. In these first laps, we've seen some truly abnormal differences in top speed and power delivery strategies. RedBull is pushing straight away, and Lindblad on the VCarb, obviously trying to make specific tests for PU. But the differences for those testing high-modulus are truly notable, for now in the order of even 20/30 kph. From the graph, you can also clearly see how those in pace mode, like Russell and Piastri, reach top speed very early and then a long clipping phase, we'll see how it evolves!

[LionsHeart]

Whats the total lap count for Piastri? Autosport tends to reset lap number after every pit stop.

[LionsHeart]

It's still very preliminary, but obviously this year there's more attention to what happens on the straight compared to last year, where speed in the corners was especially important. In these first laps, we've seen some truly abnormal differences in top speed and power delivery strategies. RedBull is pushing straight away, and Lindblad on the VCarb, obviously trying to make specific tests for PU. But the differences for those testing high-modulus are truly notable, for now in the order of even 20/30 kph. From the graph, you can also clearly see how those in pace mode, like Russell and Piastri, reach top speed very early and then a long clipping phase, we'll see how it evolves!

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HA3dMfYbAAA ... =4096x4096

Finally, some graphics. I hope we'll be able to see them repeatedly during testing. Can I ask a question? Is this graph taken from each driver's best lap, or just from a specific moment in time?

[mwillems]

Well, on one fast lap, yes, this year's cars will be faster. But in a race? So far, I'm getting the feeling the race pace will be significantly closer to the 2016 cars. But that's just a feeling.

No actual idea about race pace. In part it will be determined by how many active Aero zones there will be, and at this point the FIA have declined to say anything. We'll find out shortly for Australia. If most straights have active aero then teams can run more wing for the corners (If appropriate) and get downforce back. Quicker on straights and quicker in corners than if there are less active zones.

Some of it will be circuit specific. How will low speed circuits fare if we are relying on mechanical grip and not so much downforce or speed?

I think the FIA said more active Aero zones than there were DRS zones and Australia had 3 DRS, for instance. You could add an active zone between 5 and 6 and have most of the circuits meaningful drag affected straights as active zones.

Since active zones are available (Conditions permitting) throughout a race, race lap pace won't be so far from Q lap pace, so perhaps the race laps will be a bit faster than 2016.

Indeed. That makes a lot of sense. But I believe that to avoid losing a significant portion of battery charge, drivers will have to use significantly less power to maintain top speed on the straights. This will allow them to set consistent laps without becoming a complete slouch. Therefore, I believe race pace should be significantly lower than qualifying. Again, I don't know how much energy can be recuperated in a single lap. What the technology is capable of and what the regulations limit.

I agree. If there are many active aerodynamic zones, then less battery power will be spent on overcoming drag. In that case, rainy races will be even more chaotic.

I can't comment on in race battery, I think there is a lot in the air right now as to how to make that work well, but we'll see soon enough when the race sim laptimes are released. Ultimately I will come down to how long it takes to complete the full set of laps, and work out the average pace.

A bit of in race unpredictability with power I hope, will really add to the overtaking spectacle of F1.

[Macafangrskg]

comparing best sectors We are losing 0.2s in sec1 and another 0.1 in sec3 but we are gaining 0.5s in sector 2 which is all the corners . Our closest competitor in second sector is Mercedes and we beating them by 0.4 seconds

[venkyhere]

[Darth-Piekus]

Any news on Norris. He completed 2 laps and stayed there for some time now. Is he back in the pits for set up work or is there a problem?

[Xero]

S2 here is usually a good indicator for general performance, so that's very encouraging even at this extremely early stage. The comparisons down the straights look to be somewhat pointless in this new formula though, seeing some widely varying deployment strategies.

[De Wet]

Any news on Norris. He completed 2 laps and stayed there for some time now. Is he back in the pits for set up work or is there a problem?

He's been out 3 times of 2 laps each... Out now again. Must be checking systems or something.

[Darth-Piekus]

I see. Then the motorsport site must be bugged as he is still showing him with 2 laps and 0 pit stops but he is changing his timesheets.