Lando Norris and McLaren Brace for a Four Way Fight in Baku After Confirming Fresh MCL40 Upgrades

• McLaren will bring fresh aerodynamic upgrades to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, including the return of the rotating H-Wing that debuted at Monza
• The team expects Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull to all be capable of winning in Baku alongside them
• Lando Norris has taken three pole positions in the last four races but was denied a likely third win in Madrid by an unlucky virtual safety car

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Rob Marshall Explains Why Baku’s Long Straight Could Decide the Weekend

McLaren has confirmed it will bring another round of upgrades to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where the team expects a four way fight for victory with Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull all judged capable of winning in Baku.

The reigning constructors’ champions failed to win any of the first ten grands prix of the 2026 season but have returned to form in recent rounds, with Lando Norris claiming three pole positions across the last four races. He was denied a third win when an unlucky virtual safety car phase cost him track position at the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid.

New Parts and the Return of the H-Wing

McLaren’s official preview for the weekend confirmed the scope of the changes. “As part of the team’s continued journey throughout the 2026 season, the team will bring to Baku a set of upgrades aimed to improve the aerodynamic performance of the MCL40,” the team said. “Additionally the H-Wing, that debuted in Monza, will be back in action on a track where the drag reduction can be a factor.”

The team added that the new components will not be locked into the car immediately. “As has been the approach in previous races this season, all new parts will be evaluated throughout practice before the team makes final decisions regarding the MCL40’s Qualifying and Grand Prix setup for the weekend.”

Marshall on Balancing 2026 Development With Next Year’s Car

McLaren chief technical officer and chief designer Rob Marshall said the team’s title hopes fading has not slowed its development push. “With regulatory continuity into next season and the competition at the front so close, our motivation to keep developing the car remains high,” Marshall said. “We must balance that with work on next year’s car, but our immediate focus is on delivering more performance and fighting for more victories in 2026, while carrying forward everything we learn.”

The commitment to keep developing comes even as McLaren’s own title hopes have all but disappeared, with Kimi Antonelli dominating the drivers’ standings and Mercedes well clear of the field in the constructors’ championship. Marshall’s comments make plain that second half performance, not the title fight, is now the team’s benchmark for the rest of the year.

Why Baku Poses a Different Kind of Test

Marshall pointed to Baku’s mix of characteristics as a fresh challenge for the MCL40 package. “Baku will provide another valuable test of the MCL40 across a very different range of characteristics,” he added. “Energy management and deployment will be particularly important, as will tyre and brake management with the cars arriving at Turn 1 after the long straight with these areas relatively cold.”

He also flagged the operational risk that comes with racing on a street track where the walls sit close to the racing line. “Operationally, there is very little margin for error on a tight street circuit. A small mistake can lead to significant repairs, lost track time and resources being diverted away from performance, so confidence, precision and disciplined execution will be essential throughout the weekend.”

Norris Carries Momentum Into the First Leg of a Triple Header

Norris arrives in Baku on the back of the best run of qualifying form of his season, with three poles from the last four events, but the win count has not matched that pace after Madrid’s virtual safety car cost him what looked like a comfortable victory. Baku’s long straight, the longest on the calendar, rewards exactly the kind of straight line speed and braking precision McLaren has been chasing with its aerodynamic upgrades, and the team’s improved form makes this weekend as good a chance as any to close the gap between qualifying pace and race results.

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix opens a run of three consecutive race weekends, with rounds in Malaysia and Singapore to follow. Marshall said the team is confident of being in the mix regardless of which of the leading four squads has the edge on a given weekend. “We expect any of the top four teams to be capable of winning in Baku, with the chasing pack also getting closer, and we hope to be firmly in the fight at the front.”

From a Winless Start to the Form Team of the Second Half

McLaren’s turnaround has been one of the bigger storylines of the second half of the season. The reigning constructors’ champions went through the opening ten rounds of 2026 without a single win, a run that left the team well off the pace Mercedes set from the start of the year. Regular upgrades to the MCL40 in the rounds that followed have played a significant part in pulling McLaren back into contention, and Norris’s run of three poles in four races is the clearest sign yet that the car has caught up with the frontrunners in outright single lap pace.

Converting that pace into wins has proved harder. Madrid was the starkest example. Norris lost the lead after an unlucky sequence in a virtual safety car period that saw McLaren miss the ideal pit window, followed by a slow stop, with Norris saying afterwards that his team “were too quick” reacting to the situation and it cost him the race. Baku, with its combination of a long flat out section and a tight, technical run through the old city, will test whether McLaren’s upgraded package can turn Saturday pace into a Grand Prix result rather than another near miss.

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Written by

Jack Renn

Jack Renn is an editor at F1 Chronicle and a veteran motorsport journalist with 25 years of experience covering Formula 1 and international motorsport. A member of the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS), the global body representing accredited sports journalists, Jack has spent his career reporting from paddocks and press rooms across the F1 calendar. His work spans race analysis, technical insight, and in-depth features, giving readers authoritative coverage grounded in decades of firsthand experience at the highest level of the sport.

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