It was a decent day for McLaren at the 2026 F1 Malaysia event. In FP1, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris concluded the session in P11 and P12, respectively. The Woking outfit then saw an improvement in pace in FP2. Norris finished third fastest in the session with a 1:37.665, a mere 0.137s behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who topped the session. His teammate, Piastri, concluded FP2 in P6, 0.371s behind the benchmark time.
Following the conclusion of McLaren’s first day at the 2026 F1 Malaysia round, both Piastri and McLaren’s Racing Director Randy Singh shared their insights on the tricky track conditions at the Sepang International Circuit. The pair also spoke on the improvement in the team’s performance from FP1 to FP2.
Piastri reflects on McLaren’s first outing at the 2026 F1 Malaysia round
Reflecting on his first outing at the Sepang International Circuit, Oscar Piastri lamented the lack of grip from the track. He cited it as the factor for McLaren’s difficult outing in FP1 at the 2026 F1 Malaysia event. Nonetheless, the Australian also shared that he was excited to race around the circuit.
“I think FP2 was reasonably good. I think FP1 was a big struggle, but we seem to be a bit better. I think the circuit itself is quite cool, but the grip level and the conditions are pretty extreme in terms of how low, how dusty, how…I was going to say sandy, but it’s not sand. It’s rocks. So it’s quite a unique driving challenge for sure, but it seems like a cool circuit.”
On getting more comfortable in his MCL40
Piastri also reflected on his comfort levels in his MCL40 at the Sepang International Circuit. The Australian highlighted that while he was able to extract more from his McLaren at the 2026 F1 Malaysia event, it is still an ongoing process that has proven challenging, as he had to adjust his driving style to better align with the needs of the package.
“I don’t know if things have started suiting me, but I’ve been able to find a way to make things work a bit better. I think today it looked a bit better. I think the long run seemed pretty good. In the qualifying kind of runs, I seemed reasonably comfortable. I think now I know a bit more of what I need from the car. Unlocking that feeling was difficult. I feel like I’m getting there slowly now, but it’s still a difficult process, so we’re still working on it.”
Singh shares insights on track conditions at the 2026 F1 Malaysia event
Randy Singh shared his perspective of McLaren’s first outing at the 2026 F1 Malaysia round, reflecting that high tyre degradation was the main problem faced throughout both free practice sessions. He also shared a similar reflection to Piastri, highlighting the tricky track conditions.
“Yeah, the deg has just been high throughout. Some people are able to manage it for a short part of a run, but I think over time it just comes back to the fact that the track is really high roughness, really hot, and the tyres are very challenging in those conditions.”
Possible pit stop strategies
Ahead of the 2026 F1 Malaysia event, Singh was asked what pit stop strategies McLaren were considering, especially with the risk of rain. According to Singh, the two-stop will be the most popular option as the Sepang International Circuit is a high degradation track.
However, there is also a possibility of a three-stop should tyre degradation be worse than expected.
“Yeah, it’s very difficult on the numbers to ever get up to a three-stop. The pit lane speed-limited zone here is a bit longer than it was in the past as well, which also doesn’t help. So you might see some three-stops I think with safety cars and stuff, but you know, races with high deg tend to fall into the two-stop category just because the deg has to be so high to make it a three-stop.“
Singh on the improvement in pace in FP2
Singh then shared his insights on how McLaren were able to bounce back from a tough FP1 session in FP2. The Briton explained that in FP1, the track surface was dustier and bumpier than the team had anticipated. Hence, the set-up on both cars was not ideal for the session.
McLaren were able to make the necessary set-up adjustments ahead of FP2 at the 2026 F1 Malaysia event, allowing both Norris and Piastri to be more “comfortable in FP2”.
Singh also praised the Woking outfit’s teamwork and quick communication but added that the team still had plenty of work to do prior to qualifying.
“Certainly, we feel more comfortable in FP2. In FP1, the track was a bit rougher, a bit lower grip than we expected. It was fairly dirty, to be honest. I think we got the car dialled in much better for FP2. Good effort from the factory and track side. Still a lot of work for us to do to get ready for qualifying in the race.”
