F1 | Montoya: "Mercedes has secrets that McLaren doesn't know about."

"They give you the same equipment, but they don't explain how to use everything," the Colombian said.

di Jessica CortellazziApril 20, 2026

F1 | Montoya: "Mercedes has secrets that McLaren doesn't know about."

According to the former Formula 1 driver, McLaren needs time to discover the "special tricks" Mercedes is using to optimize its Formula 1 engine. The reigning world champions race with the same power unit as Mercedes, but have so far been outclassed. The 89-point gap is partly due to reliability, after Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were unable to participate in the Chinese GP. Some believe Mercedes is holding back some power to protect their engine, such is their advantage.

On average, the McLaren was just under six tenths slower than the Mercedes over a single lap and eight tenths slower in race trim. It's unlikely that such a difference is solely due to the chassis, and it's believed that Mercedes is extracting more performance from the power unit.

Montoya: Mercedes set to keep secrets from McLaren

Mercedes is required by the regulations to supply McLaren with an identical engine, but at the season opener in Australia, Andrea Stella seemed frustrated by a perceived lack of support. The factory teams were considered the favorites at the start of the new regulation cycle, while customer teams were aiming to bridge the knowledge gap. Mercedes complied with its obligations, but Formula One teams always try to exploit the regulations to the fullest. In this case, they had a particular incentive to do so, given that McLaren surpassed Mercedes during the ground effect era to become world champion.

For example, Mercedes can reserve the best power unit engineers for itself, although it still has to send adequate support staff to McLaren.

“There are systems that Mercedes has developed and that, when they provide them to you as a customer, you have to understand how to download and install,” Montoya explained to AS Colombia.

“They hand them to you as if they were saying, 'Let's take a drawing course. I know how to paint the Mona Lisa, but I'll give you the pastels.' There's an initial disadvantage, which is normal because one is the engine manufacturer and the other is the customer. They give you the same equipment, the hardware is exactly the same, but they don't explain how to use everything. They'll tell you, 'Look, this is how it works,' but the tricks and special features are something each team has to discover on their own, and they're easy to spot up to a certain point because you can download the telemetry and see a lot of what the other teams are doing, their GPS speeds, everything.”

Ron Dennis had warned McLaren about using Mercedes engines

McLaren's former team principal ended their Mercedes engine deal early in the last regulation cycle, switching to Honda. He believed that, as a customer, the team was destined to always be second. McLaren had never explored building its own engine in Formula 1 like Red Bull, but the agreement with Honda effectively made them a works team. Unfortunately, however, the Japanese manufacturer wasn't ready to remain permanently in F1 and ended up relegating its partners to the back burner.

According to recent sources, McLaren was aware that renewing its agreement with Mercedes could penalise it at the beginning of 2026.

However, he still banked on Mercedes' ability to build the best engine, and that confidence proved justified. In the long run, when they approach the power unit's maximum potential, there's no reason why they can't return to winning more championships.

Montoya even believes McLaren will soon return to "winning every race." Like their rivals, they are also preparing a major upgrade for the Miami GP.

F1 World Championship: Restarting in Miami

After the break, the World Championship will restart with the Miami Grand Prix, the first round of a crucial phase of the season. The Florida street circuit will provide a clearer picture of whether the balance seen in the first races will continue or whether teams like McLaren will be able to close the gap. The Sprint Race returns, and so the weekend format will change with just one free practice session available, crucial to ensure the drivers are prepared for the Sprint and the race on Sunday.

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F1 | Montoya: "Mercedes has secrets that McLaren doesn't know about."

"They give you the same equipment, but they don't explain how to use everything," the Colombian said.

Montoya: Mercedes set to keep secrets from McLaren

Ron Dennis had warned McLaren about using Mercedes engines

F1 World Championship: Restarting in Miami

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