Zak Brown says McLaren will be winning races again sooner rather than later

McLaren enter the 2026 Formula 1 season defending their Constructors' Crown as well as Lando Norris' Drivers' Title, but their start has been far from encouraging, as they seem to be fighting Red Bull Racing for third best on the grid as Mercedes disappears in the lead with Ferrari currently the only team trying to challenge them.

McLaren's MCL40 has shown no promising pace, and despite being powered by the pick of the crop Mercedes power unit, they have not been able to enjoy a similar performance advantage while suffering from reliability, as two separate electronic problems meant neither Norris nor Oscar Piastri took part in the Chinese Grand Prix last weekend in Shanghai.

However, Brown has full belief that his team will turn this situation around and said in his team address: “We’ve got the two best drivers in the world.

"We’ve got the best racing team in the world; we’ve got the best culture in a racing team, so let’s just get on with it, go to Japan, race these cars—we'll all continue to do what we do.

“I’m looking forward to when we win races," he went on. "I guarantee you when we win our next race, which will be sooner rather than later, we’re not going to be thinking about speed traces or batteries or anything; we’re going to be, ‘We’re winning Grand Prix races’.”

McLaren are currently third in the 2026 F1 Constructors' Championship with 18 points. Mercedes are leading with 98 points, while Ferrari have 67 in second.

Norris and Piastri are sixth and 12th, respectively, in the Drivers' Standings.