Weight battle shapes early 2026 pecking order

Feb.25 (GMM) The fight to meet Formula 1’s stricter 2026 minimum weight has emerged as a key storyline ahead of Melbourne, with several teams struggling to hit the new lower limit.

Williams and Aston Martin are understood to be among the outfits notably overweight after winter testing, while Alpine is believed to have reached the target.

Mercedes, too, appears relatively comfortable. Team boss Toto Wolff indicated in Bahrain that the team is in good shape on that front.

Reigning champions McLaren, however, are not believed to be at the limit – and are also not currently the outright quickest car.

Team principal Andrea Stella acknowledged the importance of trimming further kilos.

“But even if you’ve reduced the weight, you always want to reduce it further to be able to play with the ballast,” Stella said on the final day of testing in Bahrain.

Sources suggest McLaren’s first significant upgrade package will focus more on weight reduction than pure aerodynamic gains.

Yet chief designer Rob Marshall played down the obsession with the scales.

In Formula 1, ten kilograms is typically worth around three tenths of a second per lap – a sizeable deficit. But Marshall offered a broader perspective.

“I think people are too fixated on the weight,” he told Auto Motor und Sport.

“The most important thing is to own a car you want,” he said. “If the car is too heavy, you know it’s going to cost you a certain number of tenths per lap. You have to accept that.”

While Bahrain laptimes were inconclusive, McLaren still appears capable of fighting for victories – even if Stella believes Mercedes and Ferrari currently hold a slight edge.

Red Bull is also believed to be carrying excess weight. Technical director Pierre Wache admitted the team faces familiar challenges.

“Like everybody after winter, we’re trying to reduce the weight,” he said.

When the regulations last reset in 2022, Red Bull initially fielded an overweight car before shedding mass and eventually dominating.

Asked whether the current situation feels similar, Wache replied: “Yeah. We have some challenges with the weight – it’s the case for everybody. Maybe some people did a better job than us, but on our side, we will have to find some weight on the car.

“Our philosophy every time is to try and make a car quicker, not just focus on the weight limit. But it is a better position than in 2022.”

Ferrari, meanwhile, is understood to be much closer to the minimum weight – another factor behind its strong early showing under the new rules.

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