Author Archives: PressBox

McLaren plans further upgrades to the MCL40 later in the 2026 season after a run of underwhelming results, with no podium finishes in its last four races despite introducing new parts during that stretch. Andrea Stella said the team expects only limited updates in Mexico City, with more significant developments likely for the Sao Paulo and Las Vegas rounds.

Stella said McLaren’s pace was more competitive than the finishing order suggested, and he put it on par with Ferrari and Red Bull. He also said the team struggled to unlock that pace in qualifying.

At the United States Grand Prix, Lando Norris qualified and started eighth after a track-limits deletion in qualifying, then finished fifth in Austin. Oscar Piastri finished seventh. Norris briefly ran second on an alternative one-stop strategy, but that only gave him a chance if a Safety Car appeared, and no late Safety Car came before Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton moved ahead of him.

Norris said the car was “the hardest I have ever driven in my life” and said McLaren needs to improve qualifying and slow-speed corners after losing nearly three-tenths per lap in those sections at Austin.

Audi Formula Racing named Thomas Fuhr as its new chief executive officer, effective Nov. 1, in a move designed to sharpen the organization’s focus on power unit development. Fuhr will lead Audi Formula Racing GmbH in Neuburg an der Donau, where the company is developing the team’s power unit, hybrid system and gearbox.

Fuhr brings more than 30 years of engineering and leadership experience, including a stint as managing director of Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains from 2009 to 2012. The appointment is meant to allow Stefan Dreyer to concentrate on power unit technical development, while Christian Foyer will remain chief operating officer and continue overseeing day-to-day operations at Audi’s Neuburg site.

The change comes as Audi Formula Racing enters its first Formula 1 winter break after the chief executive officer role was eliminated at the start of 2025, when former CEO Adam Baker left. Audi is aiming to move up from eighth place in the Constructors’ Championship, and Mattia Binotto and Jürgen Rittersberger said the move strengthens the organization and reflects Audi’s long-term commitment to becoming a competitive Formula 1 power unit manufacturer.

Valtteri Bottas said Cadillac has reassured him that his contract is “all OK” for 2027 as speculation swirled over the team’s driver plans. Bottas pushed back on rumors that he could lose his seat after next season, with his recent lack of qualifying and race pace helping drive the talk. Marcin Budkowski declined to confirm whether Bottas or Sergio Perez have valid 2027 contracts, saying driver-lineup decisions will be announced officially at the proper time.

Colton Herta is also being linked to a full-time Cadillac drive in 2027, and the team is set to run him in first practice at Mexico City later this week so he can earn enough Super Licence points to be eligible for F1 next season. Yuki Tsunoda is another candidate after stepping in for three races for Red Bull when Isack Hadjar was injured, and he has also been mentioned as a possible replacement.

Esteban Ocon is available after losing his Haas seat to Rafael Camara for 2027 and has been mentioned as a fallback option if Cadillac cannot reach agreements with its preferred targets, though he is not thought to be a serious candidate. Cadillac’s lineup talk comes as the team continues to deal with reliability issues in its debut F1 season and has yet to score a point.

The FIA announced a broad partnership with Amazon Web Services that will make AWS the governing body’s Official AI and Cloud Computing Partner, a deal aimed at improving its ability to produce future technical regulations for Formula 1. The FIA already uses AWS high-performance computing for aerodynamic simulations, which let it run virtual air-flow tests without building physical parts and reduce both time and cost. Its digital licensing platform has also been trialed in Canada and Sri Lanka and is expected to roll out to more countries. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said the partnership would help shape the sport’s future cars, make participation easier for drivers and officials, and support the FIA’s goal of doubling global motor sport participation.

The FIA said the agreement is designed to speed up CFD simulation work and let it test more rule variations, with the current focus on using AI to accelerate and support human engineering work rather than generate design ideas directly. FIA deputy technical director Dominic Harlow said generative AI could become useful later. The partnership will also support licensing, rulebook checking, anomaly detection, safety and energy dashboards, and track-limits enforcement, with the FIA saying the tools will process data faster while keeping humans in the decision-making loop. The deal also extends to the FIA Awards and the Sustainable Innovation Series.

Oliver Bearman and Pierre Gasly reflected on the collision that unfolded at Turn 13 shortly after a Virtual Safety Car restart in the 2026 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Bearman attempted an overtake on Gasly, made contact in the move and said he had no regrets about going for it, describing the clash as a racing incident. He said Haas has to take risks because the team is not fast enough to score points on merit, and said he was trying to avoid contact when he climbed onto the inside kerb.

The contact damaged Bearman’s Haas so badly that the car became progressively worse and too unpredictable to continue. Bearman let teammate Esteban Ocon pass before retiring on lap 24 of 56. Stewards gave Bearman a 10-second penalty for the incident, which he called excessive and described as “crazy.”

Gasly finished 10th for Alpine and scored one point despite floor damage from the clash. He said the damage cost him about 5 to 10 seconds, or about 10 downforce points, and removed his chance to fight Liam Lawson for ninth place. Gasly said the move was “a little optimistic” and was not completely clean.

Red Bull Powertrains is not ready to supply Aston Martin or any other Formula 1 team, even as interest grows around its engine performance. Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said the power unit was not for sale and that the company was not in serious talks about supplying another team, adding that Red Bull and Ford remain focused on improving the engine and its integration with the car. He said the program is still in its first season, so nothing would change in the next year or so, and that more work remains on reliability, drivability and integration.

The comments come amid speculation about Aston Martin’s future engine plans, which has been fueled by its poor results. Aston Martin has scored seven points this season and sits 10th in the Constructors’ Championship, while its current engine issues are with Honda power units. Adrian Newey acknowledged Honda’s current deficit, but said he sees a lot of promise in Honda’s new projects.

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack said the team remains committed to Honda as a long-term partner. He said he expects Aston Martin and Honda to stay together when the team wins its first race. Red Bull Powertrains entered Formula 1 in 2026 and was judged the strongest internal combustion engine of the season under the FIA’s ADUO system.