2026 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix – McLaren Qualifying Report

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Saturday, 13 June

Find out what happened during FP3 and Qualifying in Barcelona and get the thoughts of McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, as well as Team Principal Andrea Stella.

The McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team will look to capitalise on opportunities to progress in Sunday’s 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, following a Qualifying session that saw Lando secure a second-row grid spot and Oscar claim P7.

Prior to Saturday’s action, the team had used the second of its four curfew exemptions within Restricted Period Three to carry out precautionary work on both MCL40 race cars last night. This saw permissible key components replaced to help improve the robustness of the installation and integration of the power unit on both cars before the final practice session.

Following the hard work put in collaboratively by the entire team trackside and also in Woking, McLaren Mastercard completed a positive Free Practice 3 with Oscar finishing the session in P2 with 12 laps on the board, followed by Lando in P4 with a total of 15 laps. The effective form seen in the opening Saturday session provided the team with crucial learnings and data, allowing them to identify key areas for performance gains in order to challenge the front-running teams.

This afternoon’s Qualifying presented multiple challenges, including shifting wind conditions, while delicate one-lap tyre management was required to find the perfect balance on such a high-energy lap. Despite these hurdles, both papaya cars worked their way through Q1 and Q2 to be in condition to challenge in the final stage of Qualifying at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Lando and Oscar both entered Q3 having achieved the objective of having two new sets of Soft tyres available for the session. However, with the added interference of a Red Flag midway through the final stage, Lando was required to bail on a strong lap as he approached the final corner, leaving him without a time set, unlike Oscar, who had managed to put a time on the board moments before the stoppage.

This left the Number 1 car with the challenge of producing a clean lap in the limited time remaining once the session resumed. With so little room for error, Lando was unable to push the limit as much as he would have liked, which likely ultimately cost him a chance at a P3 start. Oscar finished the session in P7, but only one tenth off Kimi Antonelli in third, highlighting the intensity of competition at this circuit.

Going into tomorrow’s Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, the team can be optimistic and take away positives from the day, as we appear to be back in the fight this weekend with the gap to the leading teams reduced. Looking at factors such as the long run to Turn 1 alongside strategy, race pace, and tyre management, tomorrow’s race is set to be an exciting one with plenty of opportunities to gain positions.

“We showed some progress today and I'm reasonably happy with P4. The Red Flag in the final corner on my first push lap was unlucky and probably cost us a shot at P3, but P4 is still a strong place to start. Compared to Monaco, we’re back closer to where we should be, and the pace felt better overall. With that said, the gap to Pole, around three and a half tenth, is still significant, and the car wasn’t easy to drive with the wind and heat making it inconsistent, especially at the rear.

"Looking at tomorrow, it’s going to be a hot, high-degradation race and tyre management will be everything. Strategy could go one, two, or even three stops depending on how the tyres behave, and I think most teams will end up doing similar things. There’s definitely an opportunity off the start, with smart calls, to move forward, but sustaining that against Ferrari and Mercedes over 66 laps will be tough. We’ll fight for every chance, maximise track position and try to force errors, but we’re realistic - if we’re three tenths off per lap today, we need to be perfect to stay in the mix tomorrow. Overall, happy with the step we’ve made, not happy enough with the gap. We’ll keep pushing."

"It was incredibly tight today, with such a small gap from third down to us in P7. We lost more than expected in the final sector, so we need to review why because the lap up to then felt good. Right now, Mercedes looks strong, and Ferrari have taken a step with their upgrades - their corner speeds have been impressive all season, even if they’re still paying a price on the straights.

"Tomorrow will likely be a long, hot two-stop race, maybe more, and the key will be managing degradation and maintaining pace across the stints. While Mercedes and Ferrari were quicker today than yesterday, strategy and tyre offsets could open up opportunities, and we feel more in the fight that last week. If the race plays out like we’ve seen here in recent years, with multiple stops and differing tyre life, there’s definitely a chance to gain a few positions."

Andrea Stella

Team Principal

"We are back in a situation where four teams are incredibly close to one another, which is great news and a positive step forward for us after Monaco. Today was a bit of a missed opportunity, primarily because Lando was incredibly unlucky with the Red Flag. He was on a very strong first lap just 250 meters from the finish line, which forced him to be cautious on his final attempt to ensure we got a time on the board. For Oscar, the margins were razor-thin, just a tenth of a second separated P3 from P7 today.

"Looking ahead to tomorrow, we are optimistic. The Grand Prix will be heavily dictated by strategy, race pace, and tyre management. While we know we still have work to do from a technical standpoint to fully optimise our tyre exploitation over a race distance, our qualifying and race pace are closely matched this year. We are definitely in the game and looking forward to an exciting fight down into Turn 1."