McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has stated that whilst a decision to continue its engine partnership with Mercedes was “simple” and “straightforward”, it is not the final piece in the jigsaw for a championship challenge.
McLaren returned to Mercedes in 2021 after six difficult seasons with Honda, followed by three years with Renault.
Last year, with the exception of the opening race in Bahrain, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri’s MCL60 were blessed with reliability in terms of powertrain.
When the new PU regulations come into effect in 2026, options such as reuniting with Honda, switching to Red Bull Powertrain or Audi are being considered, but McLaren has extended its contract for five years. By doing so, he chose to remain loyal to Mercedes. Existing contracts signed this season.
One of the key parts of the deal is that McLaren will have influence over the development of the system and, more importantly, how it will be integrated into its cars this year.
Stella explained the reason for the team’s decision as follows: “It was a no-brainer as we are very happy with the ongoing collaboration. You have really contributed to the further development of the team this year.
“Above all, the certainty we have from a technical point of view, the operational standards and the solidity of the results we have obtained when examining what is at stake in 2026 It was a very easy decision to make.”
“As we look to the future, we’re happy to have this level of continuity and stability.”
But Stella: We understand that being a title contender means more than just having a strong power unit.
McLaren’s progress this year since the car upgrades in Austria and Singapore has been amazing, and we expect it to continue on an upward trajectory heading into the next big rule change in 2026.
For Stella, a reliable engine is “an engine.” The most important point.” “It is a necessary condition, but never a sufficient one.”
“We still need to do a lot with the chassis to compete for the championship.
“I think we can be competitive on the powertrain side for the next few years, that’s for sure. Although we have made this decision, there is still a lot of work to be done regarding the chassis.
“Even this year, what we have achieved, yes, it’s important – remarkable in a certain way – but we didn’t develop the car for a few races, and we saw some of the (other) cars brought some upgrades, and immediately our competitiveness was not as good as it was a few races previously.
“It’s an incredibly competitive business. So, for us, it’s a focus, certainly in the collaboration with HPP but above all, on ourselves and making sure this momentum is carried forward into the next years.”
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