McLaren team principal Andrea Stella: He simply doesn’t buy that from Mercedes

Weeks ago, the Austrian Toto Wolff expressed surprise at the rapid pace at which Ferrari and McLaren are developing their racing cars. Wolff, team principal and co-owner of the Mercedes F1 team, has now reiterated during the Dutch Grand Prix that his team is reaching certain limits.

The Viennese said: “We don’t have the money to produce further developments in advance. We try to spread the developments evenly throughout the season, based on our calculations of when we can introduce the biggest updates, and with a view to maximising our points haul in the World Championship.”

“We can only do what we’re capable of. That’s why it’s a development race. When you introduce an upgrade, each of the top teams gets at least a few tenths from it. And that’s exactly what you lose. So it’s been a bit more difficult recently than it was at the start of the year.”

As a reminder: the 2026 budget cap for the 2026 Formula 1 season is set at 215 million US dollars.

Whilst still at Zandvoort, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella was confronted with Wolff’s comments. The Italian had this to say: “I’d love to believe that, but actually I don’t, because of the regulations for the 2027 power units. All teams have a certain amount of leeway regarding the cost cap, and if I’m not mistaken, we’re talking about around 3 million here.”

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“I’m convinced that Mercedes has long had developments in the wind tunnel that make the car faster than what we’re currently seeing on the track. I’m pretty sure they’ll have upgrades. Of course, as a rival, I’d prefer it if they didn’t, but I don’t expect that to be the case.”