McLaren is bringing changes to the front wing, rear wing and some floor components of the MCL40 to this weekend's Brazilian GP at Interlagos. The front wing is a new concept, and the team expects to carry it over into the launch specification of its 2027 car. The package arrives with McLaren 17 points behind Red Bull in the fight for third in the constructors' championship.
What is changing
McLaren's aerodynamics chief Peter Prodromou said: "We've got some updates coming to the car across the front wing, rear wing and some floor components as part of our normal development cycle." Autosport carried the quote on 3 November. Grandprix247 summarised the package as revised front and rear wings and smaller floor components, aimed at aerodynamic efficiency and car balance.
None of the articles we read describes the shape of the new front wing or the specific floor changes.
The link to the 2027 car
Prodromou said the learning from these updates will feed into next year's development. He added: "we also expect to carry over the concept of the new front wing into the launch specification of next year's car." The part is meant to help now and to preview the direction of the 2027 car.
He also explained the choice of venue: "Sao Paulo has been a good circuit for us in the past and is a fairly representative track, so we're hopeful these upgrades can help us take another step towards the front."
Where McLaren stands in numbers
According to Motorsport-Total, McLaren had the fourth-fastest car in each of the last four qualifying sessions. On average it was 0.511s off pole and 0.236s off the third-fastest car. In Mexico, Lando Norris finished fifth, 12 seconds behind winner Max Verstappen.
Red Bull is third in the constructors' standings on 382 points, with McLaren fourth on 365. Brazil is round 20, and Grandprix247 says 172 points remain available.
McLaren's big MCL40 update in Hungary was followed by wins for Norris in Hungary and at Zandvoort. The team has since slipped back despite a package in Baku and new parts in Austin. After the Mexican race Norris said: "If we look at Baku and stuff, I think we're still going to be struggling for pace." He added: "We know what we need to improve on, it just takes time, and hopefully we can have a better day in Brazil."
What to watch this weekend
The articles we read did not cover other teams' Brazil upgrades, and we will report those separately once confirmed. The question is whether McLaren's new front wing closes the gap straight away in practice or only shows up in race pace. Saturday's qualifying and Sunday's race will show whether the 17-point gap to Red Bull can shrink.
