Mercedes: Development for 2027 “began some time ago” as F1 2026 supremacy persists
Mercedes currently holds a 145-point advantage over its closest competitors in the 2026 Formula 1 constructors’ standings, a “nice buffer” as team principal Toto Wolff puts it, allowing the team to shift its attention towards development for 2027.
Following a challenging period during F1’s ground effect era, the Silver Arrows have excelled under the 2026 regulations, leading Ferrari in the constructors’ standings while Kimi Antonelli leads the drivers’ championship.
The team has triumphed in 10 out of 14 grands prix this season, despite McLaren and Ferrari introducing significant upgrades to their 2026 cars. Mercedes, meanwhile, made updates for the Canadian Grand Prix in May and intends to implement another set of new components next month at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. In the interim, they have introduced minor track-specific adjustments, but their pace of new developments hasn’t kept pace with Ferrari or McLaren.
The development speed at the Silver Arrows may remain this way for the rest of the season, as Wolff confirmed that his team has already begun reallocating resources to concentrate on next year’s car.
“2027 began a while ago, before the summer,” he stated after Antonelli secured victory in the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at the Madring. “During the summer, we shifted resources towards next year, and that process will continue as per our plan, regardless of our position in the championship.”
Currently, the team’s championship position appears quite secure. Ferrari faces a substantial gap to close, and while McLaren has gained some momentum with Lando Norris achieving two race wins, it seems to be a daunting challenge to overcome.
Nonetheless, Wolff is not prematurely celebrating the team’s chances in F1 2026.
Toto Wolff says Mercedes has already started working on 2026
“You could DNF or crash out. If that happens twice in a row, what seemed like a comfortable lead can quickly diminish with six races remaining,” he remarked on Sunday.
“In my view, we simply need to disregard the points until it is mathematically impossible for them to win, and until that point, we should focus on each week and strive to perform at our best.”
To deliver their "best game," Mercedes has a "solid" upgrade prepared for Malaysia. While acknowledging potential challenges with new components on track, the Mercedes principal expresses optimism regarding the upcoming parts debuting next month.
“I believe we are bringing a solid upgrade to Malaysia,” he told Sky Sports on Saturday. “We just need to get through another race in Baku, and we’ll see, but sometimes the correlation with the track isn’t as strong as expected.
“I hope that it performs well, and ideally, it will align us with the others in terms of upgrades, but there are no guarantees.”
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