{"id":462211,"date":"2026-02-06T12:03:35","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T12:03:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/462211\/"},"modified":"2026-02-06T12:03:35","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T12:03:35","slug":"first-test-showed-mercedes-has-definitely-raised-the-bar-with-2026-car","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/462211\/","title":{"rendered":"First test showed Mercedes has “definitely raised the bar” with 2026 car"},"content":{"rendered":"

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said he was especially impressed by Mercedes\u2019 performance in the first pre-season test last week.<\/p>\n

The W17 covered two-and-a-half grand prix distances per day across its three days of running at the Circuit de Catalunya<\/a>. Although rivals Ferrari and Red Bull also ran reliably during the test, Stella was particularly struck by Mercedes\u2019 performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is obviously very difficult to give an objective assessment, as we do not know the other teams\u2019 work programmes, fuel levels or work schedules,\u201d he said<\/a>. \u201cIn addition, the environmental conditions were quite different from what we normally experience on race weekends.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat said, it is clear that there are at least three competitors \u2013 Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull \u2013 who have all got off to a good start. In particular, the Brackley team has definitely raised the bar, and we will have to work hard to do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Lando<\/a>McLaren hoped to cover more laps with their new carThe sweeping changes to F1\u2019s regulations this year, especially the new power unit rules, prompted some concerns that one team might produce a much more competitive car than their rivals. But Stella said the first test gave him optimism this is not the case.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact that the three teams I mentioned are equipped with three different power units is a first indication that there may not be extremely marked differences in terms of absolute performance, at least as far as some of the PU suppliers are concerned,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Stella admitted McLaren hoped to cover more laps with their MCL40, which made its debut on the third day of the five-day test.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt was a very useful three days,\u201d said Stella. \u201cWe were able to collect a large amount of data and begin to understand how the new generation of single-seaters behave in reality on track and no longer solely on simulators.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, we would have liked to have done more laps, but even the difficulties that slowed us down on the first two days were important in helping us to better understand how to operate the car.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were well aware that by pushing the design phase to the limit, we would arrive at this shakedown very tight in terms of preparation, but thanks to the work done on the track and at Woking, we managed to make up almost all the lost time: it was a bit like building an aeroplane while in flight, but we did it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Formula 1
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