McLaren are bringing an entirely new car to Miami. Andrea Stella confirmed it last week: “across Miami and Canada, we will see an entirely new MCL40.” That is not a normal season update. That is a reset. Five weeks without a race — thanks to the cancellation of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia — gave every team more development time than a standard calendar allows. McLaren used it. Here is why the MCL40 upgrade changes everything for the championship.
- McLaren are bringing a completely new MCL40 to the F1 2026 Miami Grand Prix on May 1-3
- Mercedes’s Kimi Antonelli leads the championship after three consecutive wins by Mercedes
- Miami is a Sprint weekend — points awarded on both Saturday and Sunday
1. McLaren’s MCL40: What Has Actually Changed on the Upgrade?
“Entirely new from an aerodynamic point of view” is how Stella described it. In 2026 F1 terms, that means new floor edges, new diffuser geometry, a revised front wing configuration, and updated sidepod bodywork. The 2026 regulations use active aero — the Manual Override System (MOS) that teams can deploy in certain zones — and McLaren have been refining how the MCL40 deploys that system compared to their rivals.
In Australia, McLaren struggled. The car was inconsistent in slow corners and Oscar Piastri could not match the pace of Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes in race conditions. By Japan, Piastri was close but lost out on timing when a safety car dropped him back from Antonelli. The upgrade at Miami is designed to fix the low-speed aero deficit that has held the MCL40 back on the medium-speed corners at Suzuka and Melbourne. Miami’s layout, with its combination of tight chicanes and long straights, will be the perfect test of whether McLaren’s update philosophy worked.
2. Kimi Antonelli: Can Mercedes’s Championship Lead Survive Miami?
Three races. Three Mercedes wins. Antonelli in Australia, Russell won China, and Antonelli again in Japan. Kimi Antonelli leads the Drivers’ Championship with a nine-point advantage over George Russell, per the Formula1.com official standings. At 20 years old in his second F1 season, leading the world championship heading into race four is remarkable.
But Miami could test him. The sprint format adds chaos — two points opportunities mean more risk, more exposure, more chance for the order to scramble. And the FIA has amended the power unit deployment rules for Miami specifically, removing some of the extreme energy management requirements that have been criticised since the 2026 season began. That change benefits teams with more consistent chassis performance — and could benefit McLaren and Ferrari more than Mercedes, whose dominance was partly built on optimal energy deployment.
3. The 90-Minute FP1: Why This Extended Practice Changes Strategy
Miami’s only practice session — Free Practice 1 on Friday May 1 — has been extended from 60 to 90 minutes. The FIA confirmed this extension to compensate for the new power unit rules and the five-week gap since Japan. For teams bringing major upgrade packages, especially McLaren, those extra 30 minutes of data collection are significant. It gives the engineers time to validate simulation predictions and make mid-session adjustments before Sprint Qualifying at 4:30pm local time.
For fans, it means more meaningful Friday running — not the conservation-heavy session typical of Sprint weekends where teams often hide pace.
4. The Cadillac Debut on Home Soil
Cadillac makes their first home race appearance at Miami. Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas drive for the American manufacturer in their debut F1 season, and Miami is the first US race on the 2026 calendar. The support from an American crowd for an American constructor will be something genuinely different. Their development curve has been steep — they are running at the back of the midfield in their early rounds — but Andrea Stella’s comments suggest most teams are bringing upgrades to Miami, and Cadillac has followed the same pattern.
Colton Herta also races for Cadillac in the Formula 2 support race — his first competitive appearance at a US circuit in F2, following the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi F2 rounds. That sub-plot alone makes Miami a full weekend of interest for American motorsport fans.
5. Max Verstappen’s Quit Threat and the Red Bull Situation
Verstappen is ninth in the championship after three races. He has publicly stated he is considering his future in F1 after the power unit rules changes made his Red Bull RB22 difficult to extract performance from. The new active aero system is something his driving style — built on precise mechanical grip and minimum understeer — struggles to maximise. Red Bull’s head of development, Pierre Waché, has said the team expects to bring significant updates to Miami. If those updates do not show improvement, Verstappen’s exit will become more than speculation.
He is under contract until 2028. But in modern F1, contracts have exit clauses. The paddock is watching Red Bull at Miami more closely than any other team for different reasons.
6. Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton: The Veteran’s Charge for Podiums
Lewis Hamilton is in his first season at Ferrari after his shock January 2025 announcement. Through three races, he has one podium — third in China. His integration into the Ferrari systems and the 2026 technical package has taken time. His teammate Charles Leclerc is also third in the championship behind Russell, suggesting Ferrari are a genuine second team. Hamilton at Miami — a circuit he knows well from his Mercedes years — with a significantly upgraded Ferrari could challenge for the front row.
Ferrari are also classified as an ADUO team for 2026 (Additional Design and Improvement Opportunities), giving them additional development latitude to catch the top teams in the regulations’ first year. Miami is the first race where some of those ADUO provisions could appear on the car.
7. The Sprint Format: What It Means for the Championship
Miami is the second Sprint weekend of the 2026 season after China. The Sprint awards points from P1 (eight points) down to P8 (one point). For Antonelli, who leads by nine, a bad Sprint could tighten the championship overnight. For Piastri or Leclerc, a Sprint win followed by a race win could swing the title picture significantly. Sprint weekends in 2026 have already shown they can be volatile — China’s Sprint saw three safety cars in 17 laps.
Our Verdict at Unicorn Blogger
We think McLaren’s upgrade closes the gap to Mercedes significantly at Miami. Piastri wins the Sprint. Antonelli wins the Grand Prix but by a margin much smaller than Japan. The MCL40 upgrade is real — Stella does not overstate these things — but one race weekend is rarely enough to overturn a championship structure. The title fight in 2026 is between Antonelli and Russell at Mercedes with Piastri and Leclerc pushing all season. Miami is where McLaren announce their candidacy properly.
Key Takeaways
- McLaren bring a completely new MCL40 to Miami 2026 — Andrea Stella confirmed entirely new aero package
- Kimi Antonelli leads the championship by nine points from Russell — the Sprint format adds risk for both Mercedes drivers
- FP1 extended to 90 minutes for teams to adjust to new power unit deployment rules confirmed by FIA for Miami
- Cadillac make their first home race at Miami — Perez, Bottas and Colton Herta all in action across F1 and F2
- Verstappen is ninth in the standings; Red Bull’s Miami upgrade is the most consequential outcome for the midfield title picture
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the F1 2026 Miami Grand Prix?
The 2026 Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix takes place over the weekend of May 1-3 at the Miami International Autodrome in Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida. Free Practice 1 is on Friday May 1, the Sprint race is on Saturday May 2, and the main Grand Prix is on Sunday May 3. This is the fourth round of the 2026 F1 season.
What is the MCL40 and how is it different from McLaren’s previous car?
The MCL40 is McLaren’s 2026 Formula 1 challenger, built to the new-for-2026 technical regulations that include active aerodynamics via the Manual Override System and significantly changed power unit architecture. Team principal Andrea Stella confirmed McLaren are bringing a completely new aerodynamic package to Miami, covering floor edges, diffuser, front wing, and sidepod bodywork. The upgrade targets the low-speed aero deficit that limited the car’s performance in Australia and China.
Why were the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian F1 races cancelled in 2026?
The Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix were removed from the 2026 F1 calendar due to rising tensions related to the Iran conflict in the region. The cancellations left a five-week gap between the Japanese Grand Prix in late March and the Miami Grand Prix on May 1, giving all teams significantly more time for development and upgrade manufacturing.
How does the F1 Sprint format work?
In a Sprint weekend, there is only one practice session (extended to 90 minutes at Miami 2026). Sprint Qualifying on Friday determines the grid for the Sprint race, which takes place on Saturday. The Sprint is a shorter race — around 100 kilometres — and awards points from P1 to P8. Main race qualifying takes place on Saturday afternoon, setting the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix. Teams cannot change car set-up between Sprint Qualifying and the Sprint race itself.
We have been covering the 2026 F1 season across our Motorsport section at Unicorn Blogger, including our F1 2026 title race analysis after Antonelli took the championship lead and our guide to the 7 key 2026 F1 regulation changes. For official race information, For live timing and session data, Sky Sports F1 has comprehensive coverage of every session. Formula1.com’s Miami Grand Prix page has the full schedule and broadcast information. We also recommend checking RacingNews365 for detailed session timings and paddock updates throughout the Miami weekend.
