Martin Brundle predicts Ferrari surge amid wild three-way title fight

Martin Brundle believes that a significantly improved Ferrari team will show up for the F1 2026 season resumption in Miami.

Suggesting that McLaren also appears to know how to get its house in order, while Mercedes “is not going to stand still either”, Brundle believes that an “absolutely wild” battle between that trio is on the cards this year, with both Ferrari and McLaren “coming at” Mercedes.

Martin Brundle predicts Ferrari upgrade boost in 2026 title fight

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Formula 1 returns to action this weekend at the Miami International Autodrome.

Recently branded a season “relaunch” by Sky F1’s Martin Brundle, upgrades galore are expected across the grid.

Miami will also offer a first taste of the tweaked F1 2026 regulations, following meetings throughout April to refine the formula.

Mercedes has taken every pole and victory on offer so far this season, but McLaren provided the Silver Arrows with its sternest test yet at Suzuka.

Oscar Piastri bolted off the line and into the lead, before holding his own defending against a recovering George Russell.

Russell’s Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli benefitted from the Safety Car timing to get into the lead and streak clear. There remains a question mark, therefore, over whether Mercedes had the outright pace to beat McLaren that day.

Until Suzuka, Mercedes’ greatest threat had been Ferrari.

Appearing on Sky’s ‘The F1 Show’ podcast, Brundle was asked whether he believes Ferrari are building a serious threat to Mercedes, in the face of McLaren’s head-turning Suzuka performance.

Ferrari has featured on every F1 2026 podium thus far. Charles Leclerc’s P3s in Melbourne and Suzuka sandwiched Lewis Hamilton’s China P3.

“I think this championship is wide open,” Brundle predicts, “and I think we’ll see with this sort of enforced spring break, as it were, a lot of changes when we get to Miami and through the spring and summer.

“I think Ferrari will find a lot with their power unit and their deployment. I think they’ll improve their car a lot.

“McLaren seem very confident that they know what to do with their car to go faster as well.

“I think the top three teams, it’s going to be absolutely wild, and Ferrari will be right in there.

“Mercedes is not going to stand still either, let’s be honest, of course they’re not with their car.

“I think Mercedes will come back from Japan, although Antonelli’s pace on the hard compound tyres was absolutely extraordinary, thinking, ‘Yeah, we’ve got a race. We’ve got a challenge on our hands’.

“So those two teams are coming at them.”

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As the Miami GP race weekend moves clearly into view – this is a Sprint weekend – anticipation is building for the season resumption.

With most teams expected to introduce upgrades, McLaren has teased an “entirely new” car. Ferrari could bring a “package and a half” with them to the Miami International Autodrome.

“Miami is going to be amazing,” Brundle declared. “That is going to be such a big event for Formula 1.”

The race weekend begins with an extended FP1 on Friday, that is the sole practice session.

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