MCLAREN MASTERCARD FORMULA 1 TEAM PREPARED TO BOUNCE BACK IN SUZUKA

March 25, 2026
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Formula 1
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MEDIA RELEASE/McLaren Mastercard F1 Team – Photos: supplied

Racing returns this week following the first break in the 2026 FIA Formula 1 World Championship as McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team travels to the iconic Suzuka Circuit with the aim of bouncing back with a strong performance following important learnings from valuable time spent in Woking reviewing the opening two weekends of the season.

With both drivers entering the weekend having secured more engineering and sim time under their belt, alongside the wider team having undertaken a joint investigation together with HPP to make sure that the two separate faults suffered in Shanghai don’t occur again, McLaren Mastercard go into the weekend fully prepared to be in position to take on the challenge of securing strong points while continuing to work hard to close the gap versus the leading two teams.

Round 3 of the 2026 campaign sees the Japanese Grand Prix take place, a race weekend filled with rich history for the iconic papaya team. The circuit’s combination of fast corners and technical challenges offers the drivers a unique experience, one that is often described as one of the most exciting tracks on the calendar. The special atmosphere in Suzuka generated by some of the most passionate and energetic fans in the world will also provide an incredible backing throughout every session for the team.

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Away from Suzuka, McLaren Driver Development and F1 Reserve Driver, Leonardo Fornaroli had his first experience in a Formula 1 car, having successfully completed a Driver Development Test at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Monday and Tuesday, piloting the MCL60 that secured nine podiums during the 2023 Formula One World Championship.

The Arrow McLaren IndyCar team also return to action after a parallel weekend away from track with the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham. With three separate winners in the opening three rounds of the 2026 NTT IndyCar Series, Tony Kanaan and team will be looking to challenge at the front of the field in Sunday’s race.

Mark Temple-Technical Director – Performance

“Reflecting on the opening rounds of the 2026 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, we have seen two very different circuit layouts. The Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne Park provided medium and high-speed chicanes, whereas the Shanghai International Circuit in China provided long, low and medium speed corners.

“Even though we are only in the early stages of this new generation of Formula 1, we have already experienced two different power unit challenges and requirements in terms of harvest and deployment, affecting areas such as driving approach and racing tactics.

“Looking ahead to this weekend in Japan, we expect to see something a little more like Melbourne. Suzuka remains a unique and challenging circuit layout with its iconic corners, but like Melbourne it is a more energy-starved track. We therefore anticipate more artefacts of energy recovery in a number of areas of the circuit such as entering Turn 1. This will be an important area to optimise along with the chassis and tyre performance.

“We knew 2026 was going to bring a lot of new challenges, and we will continue to build our understanding and our performance united as one team. This understanding will put us in the best position to maximise chassis performance and power unit exploitation, both key areas for competitiveness.”

Allocated tyre compounds: