McLaren will introduce further upgrades at the United States Grand Prix as they look to improve their car's performance and hold off a resurgent Red Bull in the Constructors' Championship over the remaining six rounds of the season.
The reigning world champions remain third in the standings but fell into the clutches of fourth-placed Red Bull over the first of the end-of-season triple headers. McLaren failed to score a podium across that run, while Red Bull claimed four top-three finishes, including two wins for Max Verstappen, cutting what had been a 76-point deficit to just seven points. McLaren's official preview described their 33-point haul over the last three events as "significantly lower than anticipated."
McLaren head to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin this weekend, a track they hope will suit their car better. Chief technical officer Rob Marshall said the team is bringing a modest selection of upgrades aimed at braking reliability and performance issues, along with small floor changes to test. He noted that many factors, including car upgrades and driver preferences for certain circuits, make the relative performance of top teams hard to predict.
The team's Singapore weekend was hurt by losing eight points on the final lap of the Sprint after a collision between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Norris has apologised and said he takes responsibility for his mistakes. McLaren now return to Austin, the scene of a high-profile 2025 Sprint crash, and have little room for missed opportunities.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing