Over the first three race weekends of the 2026 Formula 1 season, every competitve session ended the same way: With a Mercedes driver in P1. George Russell took both pole position and the win at the Australian Grand Prix, while Kimi Antonelli did the same at both the Chinese Grand Prix (where Russell took pole — and the win — for the F1 Sprint race) and the Japanese Grand Prix.
After a long layoff, F1 returned to action this week at the Miami Grand Prix, and that break has done McLaren some good. The defending Constructors’ Champions brought a host of upgrades to South Beach, and when the dust settled after Friday’s F1 Sprint qualifying, defending Drivers’ Champion Lando Norris was atop the timing sheets.
The McLaren driver hailed the upgrades — and the ability to feel “grip” again — after the qualifying session.
“This is a perfect result for us and a nice way to reward the team. We have a lot of new upgrades on the car so it’s nice to feel some grip again,” said Norris. “I’ve always loved Miami, both on and off the track, so it’s a good result for us. We know this track has been good to us, and we knew what we were bringing might be a good step and it is. I’ve always felt good around here and although it’s only the beginning of the weekend and there’s a long way to go, but it’s nice to start with pole.”
In McLaren’s media report both Norris (and teammate Oscar Piastri who qualified third) talked about the upgrades.
“I’m happy with that. The car had good potential, which was really nice to see. We still have things to improve, but the new package is a good step, so thank you to the whole team for their efforts. Congratulations to Lando as well – we didn’t luck into today’s result, the potential is there,” said Piastri.
“The Ferraris looked strong throughout the day, so qualifying where we have is a really good effort. Whilst we expect the Mercedes to remain competitive, they haven’t looked as dominant so far, but there’s still a lot of track action to go. We’ll take the learnings from today and see what we can do in the Sprint, before we switch our focus to GP Qualifying.”
“We came into this weekend having put a lot of hard work into these upgrades, but you can never be certain what to expect until the car is on the track. I’m incredibly happy for the whole team because, from the very first lap, it felt like we had taken a step forward. It gave me the confidence I’ve been looking for, allowing me to really push and exploit its potential straight away,” added Norris.
“It’s a great start, and it feels good to be right in the mix, but we’re keeping our feet on the ground. It was incredibly close out there with several teams looking quick, and we know there are still plenty of unknowns, especially when it comes to race pace. We are still learning how to get the most out of this new package, but we’ve started as well as we could have asked for. For now, I’m happy with what we’ve achieved, and we will focus on making further improvements ahead of the Sprint and Grand Prix Qualifying tomorrow.”
According to the team’s Car Presentation Submission to the FIA, McLaren brought seven new components to Miami, including a new rear wing and a new floor.
Neil Houldey, the team’s technical director of applied engineering, referred to this host of upgrades as the team’s “first phase” of their development program.
“We’re pleased with today’s result and performance across the opening day of running in Miami. The car has been great for both drivers, and the first phase of our development upgrades has shown promising signs,” said Houldey.
“To come away with a Pole and third on tomorrow’s Sprint grid, given where we were in the first few races, is a strong step forward. Credit to the team at the factory for this first step, from aerodynamics and design through to manufacturing, and to the crew at the track who finished putting the package together, ready for today’s sessions.”
A pretty impressive start to McLaren’s first phase.