McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella has asserted that the MCL40 chassis possesses greater performance capability than its sixth and thirteenth-place qualifying results at the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix. Lando Norris secured P6, while Oscar Piastri qualified P13 for Sunday’s race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
The qualifying session saw Lewis Hamilton claim pole position for Ferrari with a lap time of 1:16.514, narrowly ahead of George Russell in the Mercedes. Charles Leclerc completed the top three for Ferrari.
Max Verstappen, who initially qualified fourth, will start fifth due to a grid penalty. Kimi Antonelli will therefore begin the race from fourth position.
Stella acknowledged the team’s disappointment, particularly after Norris topped the third free practice session and Piastri finished fourth. The McLaren MCL40 demonstrated stronger pace in earlier sessions than in recent race weekends.
However, the car’s behaviour became inconsistent during qualifying. Stella highlighted the MCL40’s unpredictable handling when pushed to its limit as a persistent issue throughout the 2026 season.
The team principal explained that while the car shows potential when drivers extract approximately 99 percent of its performance, attempting to find the final one percent leads to a sudden loss of lap time. This characteristic makes the car challenging to trust.
This issue impacted Piastri in Q2, preventing him from advancing to the final qualifying segment. Norris also experienced difficulties in Q3, aborting his final fast lap.
The problem is not isolated to Mexico. Norris faced similar challenges during qualifying for the United States Grand Prix, where he started eighth.
The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, situated over 2,200 meters above sea level, presents unique challenges due to thinner air affecting downforce and cooling. The circuit is also known for its low grip levels.
McLaren has not achieved a podium finish in the last four consecutive rounds. The team currently sits fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, tied on points with Red Bull.
Despite the car’s handling complexities, Stella stressed that both the team and drivers share responsibility for performance. He stated that the available material is more competitive than the qualifying results suggest.
“The other side is that this is simply the material we have. And that material is more competitive than a sixth and a thirteenth place in qualifying,” Stella commented.
McLaren plans to introduce further upgrades to the MCL40 for the upcoming Brazilian and Las Vegas Grands Prix, with limited new components available for Mexico.
Before the Mexico City Grand Prix, Kimi Antonelli leads the Drivers’ Championship with 365 points. George Russell is second with 242 points, and Lewis Hamilton is third with 241 points.
In the 2026 season, Norris has generally outperformed Piastri in qualifying, leading 10-5 in their head-to-head comparison across 15 shared races.
The adjusted starting grid for the Mexico City Grand Prix sees Liam Lawson disqualified from ninth place due to a technical infringement.
The full adjusted qualifying results are as follows: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), 2. George Russell (Mercedes), 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 4. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), 5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull), 6. Lando Norris (McLaren), 7. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull), 8. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls), 9. Pierre Gasly (Alpine), 10. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi).
