Zak Brown addresses ‘bittersweet’ McLaren win as Hungarian GP absence explained

Zak Brown declared it a “bittersweet” day for McLaren as Lando Norris won the Hungarian Grand Prix, and Oscar Piastri suffered.

In a race where McLaren’s strategy came under the spotlight, Norris clinched his first victory as a world champion in impressive fashion. Piastri, meanwhile, was forced to park his McLaren due to a gearbox issue. Zak Brown was not at the Grand Prix in Budapest due to other racing commitments at Silverstone.

Zak Brown hails upgraded McLaren ‘step’ at Hungarian GP

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While there was a great deal of attention on the 16-part Aston Martin upgrade in Hungary, McLaren also came armed with a package for its MCL40.

It was an impactful debut as Norris clinched pole position by 0.012s from Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton. Norris went on to secure a statement victory, ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli.

There was pain on the other side of the garage, as Piastri went from victory contender to DNF.

His collision with Carlos Sainz while trying to lap the Williams proved costly, as McLaren pitted Norris who returned to the track as net race leader.

It formed part of a series of events put under the microscope by Uros Radovanovic, PlanetF1.com’s resident data expert.

Norris went on to secure his and McLaren’s first victory of the season. The differing fortunes of both drivers were recognised by CEO Zak Brown.

Brown was not in attendance at the Hungarian Grand Prix, due to his BRDC Classic racing commitments at Silverstone.

Brown took a GT2B class win alongside his son Max.

Brown offered his Hungarian Grand Prix reaction via a LinkedIn post.

“WINNERS in Hungary!” Brown wrote.

“Bittersweet day for the team. Mega result for Lando taking our first win of the season and his first as LN1.

“Tough end to the weekend for Oscar after a great drive, being forced to retire from P3 due to gearbox issues and from what could’ve at least been a double podium for the team.

“This weekend has shown we’ve made a step in the right direction right before the summer break.

“Thanks to the team for all their hard work and dedication so far this season, we’ll keep on pushing.”

More on McLaren from PlanetF1.com

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Sainz offers ‘pretty good excuse’ for Oscar Piastri Hungary collision

McLaren, the reigning Constructors’ champion, heads into the F1 2026 summer shutdown third in the standings.

The gap to Ferrari one position up the road is 87 points. Leading team Mercedes is another 72 clear.

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Read next – Hungarian GP conclusions: Norris afterglow, Piastri the nearly man, Newey insult