News Summary
- Andrea Stella admitted McLaren failed to maximise the full potential of the MCL40 during Q3 at the Italian GP.
- Oscar Piastri qualified third but will start sixth after a three-place grid penalty, while Lando Norris moves from ninth to eighth.
- Stella expects power unit and battery management to play a key role in Sunday’s race at Monza.
Andrea Stella admitted McLaren could have executed qualifying better at Monza after both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri struggled to reproduce the strong track positioning they had achieved earlier in the session.
As Norris had already indicated, the McLaren team principal acknowledged that finding the right position on track was crucial at the Italian GP, where the margins are extremely small and the tow can make a significant difference on the long straights.
Piastri initially secured third place with a 1:21.966, but a three-place grid penalty for impeding Liam Lawson in Q2 drops the Australian to sixth on the starting grid. Norris set a 1:22.256 to qualify ninth and will move up to eighth after Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s grid penalty.
The result leaves McLaren facing a more complicated Sunday, particularly with Mercedes, Ferrari and Alpine showing strong straight-line performance at Monza.
Stella first congratulated Pierre Gasly and Alpine on their surprise pole position before highlighting the importance of execution at the Temple of Speed.
“Firstly, congratulations to Pierre Gasly and Alpine on a fantastic Pole position. Today’s Qualifying was a clear demonstration of how crucial execution is at Monza, where the margins are incredibly fine,” Stella said in McLaren’s official qualifying report.
The Italian pointed out that McLaren had handled the opening stages of qualifying well, particularly when it came to positioning the cars to benefit from the slipstream.
“From this point of view, we performed very well in Q2, positioning our cars effectively to maximise the slipstream, but unfortunately, we failed to replicate that in the final segment of the session,” he explained.
“We struggled to find the right track position in Q3, and a few inaccuracies meant we simply didn’t maximise the potential we had.”
The team’s official report also noted that Piastri’s first Q3 lap was enough for third place, but a lock-up at the first chicane prevented him from completing his final attempt. Norris was directly behind his teammate and subsequently lost the benefit of the tow, compromising his own final run.
The sequence was particularly costly given how tightly packed the field was at Monza. McLaren had shown stronger pace in Q2, with Piastri taking second and Norris progressing comfortably, but neither driver was able to improve in the final phase.
Piastri’s penalty then compounded the situation. Instead of starting from third, the reigning world champion will line up sixth, while Norris will start eighth.
“These are not the positions we were hoping for, but we have to focus on extracting the best from this situation,” Stella said.
The McLaren boss believes Sunday’s race could offer opportunities to recover ground, with energy deployment and power unit management likely to influence overtaking and strategy.
“Tomorrow is a long race with many strategic elements at play, particularly with power unit management. There will be opportunities to overtake, and it will be a challenging but interesting race,” Stella added.
The challenge comes at a circuit where McLaren had already identified its performance against Mercedes as an important benchmark for the second half of the 2026 season. The team also introduced its own version of the so-called Macarena rear wing, designed to reduce drag and improve aerodynamic efficiency on Monza’s long straights.
Now, with Piastri starting sixth and Norris eighth, McLaren will have to rely on race execution to turn a compromised qualifying result into a stronger Sunday.
“We are focused on making up ground and delivering a much stronger performance for the team and our fans,” Stella concluded.
GRANDE PRÊMIO follows all the action from the Italian GP, the 13th round of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
FAQ
What happened to McLaren in Italian GP qualifying?
McLaren showed strong pace in Q2 but could not reproduce the same track positioning and slipstream advantage in Q3. Small execution errors prevented Norris and Piastri from extracting the MCL40’s full potential.
Where will Piastri and Norris start the Italian GP?
Piastri will start sixth after receiving a three-place penalty for impeding Liam Lawson. Norris qualified ninth but moves up to eighth because of Antonelli’s grid penalty.
Can McLaren recover positions in the Italian GP?
Stella believes so, particularly because Monza offers overtaking opportunities. Battery deployment and power unit management are expected to be important factors during the race.
