21 August 2026 09:45 (UTC)
Re-energised from the summer break, and with fresh upgrades installed, Lando has high hopes for the second half of 2026
A rested and refreshed Lando is hoping to bid a fond farewell to one of his favourite tracks as he looks to build on a first win of the season.
The McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team signed off in style before the summer shutdown with a third successive Hungarian Grand Prix victory. We’re now looking to continue that form in the Netherlands, following Lando’s win here in 2024 and Oscar’s victory in 2025.
The historic Dutch circuit won’t feature on the schedule in 2027, bringing an end to its second run on the calendar, and Lando is hoping for a happy send-off. He is aiming to keep up his and the team’s momentum after a victory in the final race before the shutdown, when an upgrade package made an immediate impact.
Additional updates are planned for this weekend, which will complete the package we introduced in Hungary, including a new rear wing and rear brake ducts.
“I’m never the guy who gets too far ahead of myself, so I’m not going to come here thinking we should just win the race again,” he said. “But our goals are set high, so we want to believe we can.
“With the new parts we brought – including the new floor in Budapest - we need to understand if it’s for performance everywhere, at every track, on all types of surfaces, and all types of corners, or whether it was more specific to Budapest.
“We are being patient when it comes to understanding how much performance that really brought us. But it was clear we took a step forward, and that’s a good sign. We still want to believe we can be very competitive here.”
On the back of a well-earned break, spent largely in Greece with friends, Lando returns recharged after an intense first half of the season. He sits fifth in the World Drivers’ Championship going into the restart, 10 points behind fourth-placed Charles Leclerc, and 91 points behind Championship leader Kimi Antonelli.
Following the reset provided by F1’s new era, Lando says he is taking the season race by race rather than focusing on winning the title again. Expectations remain high, however, and the reigning World Champion is excited by what lies ahead, having seen the team giving everything behind the scenes.
Asked what gives him belief he can compete towards the top of the grid between now and the end of the season, Lando replied: “Because McLaren is the team I'm with. That's the biggest factor.
“The people we have, what we have achieved over the last few years and the leadership we have within the team - part of it from myself, but also from Andrea, Zak, and the other leaders within McLaren.
“Everyone has a very good mindset – the type you need to have to fight against the best in the world. And if I drive as well as I did in Budapest, and as I have done for a lot of this season, then I'm very confident in myself too.”
Last year’s race in Zandvoort proved to be a turning point for Lando. Following a DNF at the Dutch circuit, he went on to take five podiums from the next six races, propelling him to the top of the Championship. It was a lead he would never relinquish.
"It was an important weekend,” he says. “Not because of the result, but because it allowed me to go out and drive a little more freely – to race and qualify a little bit more freely. When I can get into that rhythm, I know I am very, very strong.
“It wasn't necessarily the DNF or the situation I was in, in that exact moment, that changed anything - I had already started the work by that point. But it was following this weekend last season that you saw the work that I was doing on- and off-track start to come together, so it was an important weekend.”
Lando and Oscar’s victories here over the past two years continued a proud McLaren record on this short, undulating track, which snakes through the sand dunes.
We have won five times at Zandvoort, and the last time it held a swansong in 1985, before a 36-year absence, the race ended with a McLaren 1-2. On that occasion, Niki Lauda claimed the final victory of his F1 career, holding on to beat teammate Alain Prost by just two-tenths of a second.
“It’s a track I’ve always enjoyed and liked,” Lando said. “It is always a fun event, a good atmosphere, good passion, and that’s what you want. I prefer going to small races where the fans are more excited.
“We have performed well here as a team in the past, so I’m hoping this weekend is the same again.”
