Divyank Kushagra Bansal 
Ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, McLaren Racing has confirmed that it will continue using Mercedes-AMG powertrains for its F1 team until the end of 2030, thanks to a renewed five-year deal. This makes the Woking-based outfit Mercedes-AMG’s first customer for the new 2026 power unit era alongside the works team. McLaren’s existing powertrain agreement is due to culminate at the end of 2025.
McLaren Racing and Mercedes-AMG share a long history of working together in F1. Before switching back to Mercedes power in 2021, McLaren was powered by Mercedes for a stretch from 1995 to 2014. 2026 will mark the 26th year (non-consecutive) of collaboration between the two brands. If not for McLaren’s association with Honda (2015-2017) and Renault (2018-2020) for its F1 engines, it could have been a continuous partnership with Mercedes-AMG. In the past three seasons, McLaren has garnered 15 podium finishes, a pole at the F1 Sprint in Brazil, and a pole and victory in the F1 Sprint in Qatar this season.
Sharing his thoughts on the announcement, Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport said, “It has been a cornerstone of our motorsport strategy to work with strong customer teams. This has many advantages: it gives a clear competitive benchmark, accelerates our technical learning, and strengthens the overall F1 business case for Mercedes-Benz. McLaren has been a fierce and fair competitor since 2021, especially in the second half of this season. McLaren’s strong performances underline the importance of transparent and equal supply to all customer teams in the sport if we wish to achieve the goal of ten teams capable of fighting for podium finishes.”
“Mercedes-Benz has been a brilliant and reliable partner of the McLaren Formula 1 team. The extension signifies the confidence that our shareholders and the wider team have in their powertrains and the direction we’re taking with them into the new era of regulations ahead. We have been successful together, both in the last three seasons and when they previously powered the team, so we look forward to the success to come as we continue our journey to fight consistently at the front of the grid,” said Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing.
F1 is set to usher in a new era of sustainable racing from 2026 with a host of new power unit regulations. The next-generation engines will run on 50% internal combustion and 50% electrical power to deliver an output of over 1,000 horsepower. The MGU-K (Kinetic Motor Generator Unit) will almost triple the amount of electrical power produced by the current hybrid components. It is expected to go up from 120kW to 350kW. Moreover, starting in 2026, F1 cars will run on fully sustainable fuels only, and, the quantity of fuel used by each car (per race) is expected to drop to 70kg. In comparison, this figure stood at 160kg in 2013. In 2026, Formula One will also welcome two new power unit manufacturers to the current four incumbents – Audi and Ford.
