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The Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps was set up as one of Formula 1’s toughest energy-management tests of 2026, with McLaren team principal Andrea Stella and Williams chief trackside engineer Paul Williams saying the 7.004-kilometre lap’s long full-throttle sections, steep climbs and limited braking zones could expose the strengths and weaknesses of the new hybrid power units. Stella said drivers had already raised concerns about unpredictable speed differences as they manage electrical energy, and he warned that the new straight-line mode will not always be available in high-speed corners because of lateral forces. He said the challenge could still produce strong overtaking, even as drivers have to back off in unusual places to recharge energy for the straights.

Williams called Spa the most energy-sensitive circuit seen so far this season, with superclipping expected in the middle sector, plus ride-height and skid-block wear issues. Teams also have to balance straight-line speed against high-speed performance through corners such as Pouhon and the Les Combes and Fagnes chicanes, even as active aero and Overtake Mode change the usual downforce-versus-drag tradeoff. Five SLM zones have been added for 2026 and stay active in wet conditions. Pirelli’s C2, C3 and C4 tyres point to a likely one-stop race centred on the hard compound, although wear, safety cars, pit-stop timing and the chance of rain could change strategy. The start of Sunday’s race was expected to be especially chaotic before teams settled into more optimized energy use later.

The Belgian Grand Prix was the 10th round of the season and the first race of a double header before Hungary and the summer break, and several teams arrived with different pressures. Red Bull came off a disappointing British Grand Prix, and Max Verstappen said Spa is his favorite track, though he warned that energy limits on the straights could make the weekend trickier. Isack Hadjar said Red Bull did not expect to lead and needed to apply lessons from Silverstone, where he outqualified Verstappen and finished fifth. Hadjar has now strung together five consecutive top-six finishes. Kimi Antonelli was aiming to rebound, Ferrari wanted to show its recent improvement against Mercedes, and Racing Bulls were trying to hold off Alpine in the midfield.

Former Haas Formula 1 team boss Guenther Steiner urged McLaren to stop blaming Mercedes for its 2026 struggles and build its own engine instead, saying the team needed to “grow up” and “stand on their own two feet.” Steiner called McLaren’s complaints about its Mercedes power unit a familiar excuse and said the manufacturer should put sponsorship money into an engine program rather than blaming suppliers when results fall short. He said McLaren had raised similar concerns about Mercedes, Renault and Honda in the past.

Steiner said McLaren had enough money to make the move and argued that becoming self-sufficient would strengthen both its team identity and its road-car business. He pointed to Red Bull and Audi as examples of manufacturers building more independence in Formula 1. He also said McLaren had changed partners often enough to stop relying on outside suppliers, though he acknowledged that building a power unit would be difficult and that funding and hiring the right people would be the biggest hurdles.

The comments came as McLaren, the reigning constructors’ champions, had not won any of the first nine races of the season. Mercedes led the standings and had taken seven wins in nine Grands Prix, split between Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, while the works team also led McLaren 333 to 179 after nine rounds. McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said during the British Grand Prix weekend that the team still appeared to be leaving performance on the table from Mercedes High-Performance Powertrains, but he did not directly blame Mercedes for the issue.

Mercedes heads to Spa-Francorchamps for the Belgian Grand Prix with a title lead and a car quick enough to fight at the front, but Toto Wolff said reliability problems and missed chances have already cost the team points it cannot afford to lose. He wants Mercedes to leave the final double-header before the summer shutdown with better reliability, fewer mistakes and more points than it has recently collected.

Mercedes has converted that pace into seven wins from nine races and all nine pole positions in 2026, with its only defeats coming in Barcelona and Silverstone. Andrea Kimi Antonelli retired in Barcelona because of an electrical failure, George Russell retired from the lead in Canada with a similar problem, and Antonelli’s Silverstone race was undone by a wheel-shield issue, a slow start, front-left damage, a second pit stop and a five-second penalty that dropped him out of the points. Mercedes has covered 5,215 of a possible 5,408 kilometers in grands prix this season, more than every team except Ferrari, and still leads Ferrari by 78 points in the constructors’ standings. Its drivers sit first and second in the championship, with Russell having cut Antonelli’s lead to 25 points.

Wolff said he would rather keep the quickest car and accept occasional failures than settle for a slower but reliable one, though he also said Mercedes must solve its reliability gremlins. He said Spa should produce good racing and overtaking, but qualifying and clean execution will still be crucial. The final stretch before the summer break is another test and a chance for Mercedes to finish stronger.