McLaren's strange start to F1 2026 explained

Access all areas of F1's 2026 launch season with The Race Members' Club! Join now to claim your free 7-day trial: https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership McLaren won't take part in the first day of F1 pre-season testing at Barcelona next week - but it's not quite what it seems. Instead, it's taking a different approach to most other teams that have outlined their intentions so far, as team principal Andrea Stella insists it was "always plan A" to skip day one to maximise the amount of time McLaren has to develop parts and add performance. Edd Straw and Jon Noble were at the McLaren Technology Centre to hear from Stella and part of McLaren's senior technical team, where it was also revealed that the MCL40 is unlikely to be updated between testing and the first round of the season. 00:00 What McLaren revealed 02:01 The risk of a later start 04:09 Understanding the 2026 cars 06:10 McLaren's expectations 07:48 What being 'late' really means Subscribe: http://the-race.com/youtube_subscribe The Race Members' Club: https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership Website: http://the-race.com/ Twitter: @wearetherace Instagram: @wearetherace Facebook: http://facebook.com/wearetherace Podcasts: http://the-race.com/podcasts #f1 #formula1 #formulaone #f12026 #f1testing #f1updates #f1latest #f1insights #f1news #mclaren #mclarenf1 #andreastella #grandprix #therace #mcl40