Shanghai, China : McLaren will look to turn a painful setback at the Chinese Grand Prix into motivation for the rest of the season, according to team principal Andrea Stella.
Both drivers, reigning champion Lando Norris and teammate Oscar Piastri, failed to start Sunday’s race due to electrical issues linked to the Mercedes power unit. It marked the first non-start of Norris’s Formula One career, while Piastri has yet to complete a race lap in the 2026 season after earlier crashing before the start in Australia.
Stella admitted the situation was tough—especially for Piastri—but praised both drivers for maintaining a positive mindset.
“If we consider that Oscar has not been able to start a race at the beginning of the season, that’s pretty difficult to process,” Stella said. “But both remain positive, and that reflects the culture we’ve built.”
The Italian highlighted McLaren’s recent journey, including last season’s championship success, stressing that resilience through adversity is what defines a title-winning team.
The issue in China was traced to the electrical side of the Mercedes engine, with both failures occurring almost simultaneously—something Stella described as “exceptional and uncharacteristic.”
McLaren will now work closely with Mercedes High Performance Powertrains to investigate the faults and determine whether any responsibility lies on the team’s side.
“It’s a tough moment to lose points so early in the championship for something out of our control,” Stella said, adding that a deeper analysis would follow to prevent future failures.
