McLaren CEO Zak Brown confirmed on July 3, 2026, at Silverstone that his team remains the only Mercedes-powered customer squad competing without the manufacturer's newly introduced reliability engine upgrade during the British Grand Prix weekend.
The upgraded power units, which feature modified batteries and structural reliability improvements, were introduced by Mercedes at the previous race in Austria, with customers Alpine and Williams receiving their respective allotments this weekend due to component life cycles and mileage considerations.
Engine Upgrade Timeline
Brown explained that the delay is due to existing engine lifespans that must be completed before swaps occur.
"You've got to cycle through your engines and we've got life left on our current engines, so we need to wait until we do an engine change," he said.
He expressed hope that the implementation of the new specification would happen by the upcoming round at Spa-Francorchamps.
"You'd want it as quickly as you can, but you need to run cycles through the engines.
Obviously you can move things in and out, but we'll have it soon, hopefully for the next race," Brown added.
Brown minimized any potential frustration concerning the engine delay, characterizing it as an expected administrative timing scenario. "Of course we'd like to have it.
Any time you have performance that you know is coming but you don't have it on your car yet, you want to get it as quickly as possible.
But I wouldn't say it's a frustration.
It just is what it is and we just keep our head down and keep pushing hard and it'll be in the back in not too long," he said.
Competitive Outlook
Brown discussed the competitive landscape and noted that the performance gap observed in Austria did not represent a major decline for the team.
"Yeah. Wasn't really much of a dip.
We've not been at the front and Austria was no different. Oscar had a very good race.
Lando's race wasn't as good but we understand why," he said.
He expressed belief that both the Drivers' and Constructors' titles remain competitive as the grid tightens over the summer sequence.
"I think the Constructors', I think the Drivers' is open.
We've got a lot of work ahead of us but it looks like the top four teams will have, I think we'll all win races this year, the field will tighten up, and we just need to get some more development on the car," Brown said.
Brown forecast that updates arriving close to the summer shutdown would push the Papaya squad back into podium-contending positions.
"I'd like to think in and around the summer break we should be at the front of the field, but I don't think it's a track-specific thing," he said.
He maintained a positive perspective regarding technical projections for the remainder of the racing year.
"I think we'll be winning races this year, so quite optimistic for the future," Brown concluded.
