Stella makes telling Oscar Piastri admission as McLaren comeback builds

It was not a given that Oscar Piastri would maintain the same “harmony” with McLaren teammate Lando Norris, after Piastri came out on the losing end of the F1 2026 title battle.

That is the claim made by McLaren team principal Andrea Stella who, in a telling admission, confirmed that the “relationship” between Norris and Piastri has actually grown even stronger in F1 2026. Stella also praised the pair for how they have worked to adapt to the new F1 2026 power units, which have been criticised at times by both drivers.

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris strengthening alliance

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F1 2026 marked a complete reset for Formula 1. While Mercedes thrived in the early rounds, McLaren, the reigning double champions, struggled for results and reliability.

But, McLaren achieved a crucial breakthrough at the Hungarian Grand Prix as Lando Norris took the win. Oscar Piastri looked set to be part of a McLaren one-two, one way or the other, before a gearbox failure ended his race.

In addition to the successful introduction of its Hungarian GP upgrade package, Stella says that McLaren is also making gains with its understanding of the Mercedes power unit, even if there is still further progress to be made.

The new F1 2026 power units have proven polarising. Piastri bluntly said that “it sucks” in Spa. Norris was a vocal early critic of the regulations.

“I am very pleased with how our driver line-up is performing in this early part of the 2026 season,” said Stella in a McLaren Q&A.

“For Oscar and Lando – as indeed for their twenty colleagues on the F1 grid – the impact of the new regulations has been nothing short of disruptive.

“The new generation of single-seaters requires not only an adaptation of driving style but, above all, much greater focus on understanding how to exploit the full potential offered by the new power units.

“The learning process has at times proved complicated and was slowed down, particularly in the early stages, by various reliability issues. Both have responded in the right way, working with great commitment alongside the team, day in, day out.

“There is still room for improvement, particularly regarding the power unit, and we are working very well with our partners at HPP, including on the interaction between the driver and the power unit.”

Piastri and Norris were involved in an intriguing 2025 title battle which also included Max Verstappen. The end result was Norris becoming world champion. Piastri was forced to settle for third, despite at one stage leading the championship comfortably.

Stella said it was no guarantee that Piastri and Norris relations would remain the same after 2025, especially on Piastri’s side as the loser in that intra-team battle.

Yet, this is a partnership growing stronger, not broken.

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“Another aspect I’m really enjoying about our drivers is the way they’re working together,” Stella continued. “It wasn’t a given that, after last year – when they found themselves battling for the world title right up to the final race – the harmony they’d built would remain intact.

“Yet not only has this not changed, but the relationship between them and with the team has actually become even stronger.

“Whilst this might, in a sense, have been expected of Lando – given that he was ultimately the one to become champion – it was not quite so predictable for Oscar, who, instead, has relied even more heavily on the team to accelerate his development, both on and off the track.”

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