McLaren’s Marshall rejects Wolff’s ‘benchmark’ Red Bull claim

15:17, 12 Feb

byOlly Darcy

McLaren's Chief Designer, Rob Marshall, has responded to Toto Wolff's comments about Red Bull's powertrain being "the benchmark" for the rest of the grid.

"It looks like there's a good gaggle of cars that are very competitive."

Those thoughts came from the Mercedes CEO and team principal after Max Verstappen finished second behind Lando Norris and McLaren after the first day of testing M

Mercedes looked to have set the benchmark during the first winter test in Barcelona after an impressive week, but it was Lando Norris and Max Verstappen who led the way ater the first day of testing at the Bahrain international circuit.

The Dutchman was also able to put down 136 laps during his day of testing, resulting in the Mercedes CEO and team principal stating that Verstappen and the Austrian team were the combination to beat in 2026.

However, Marshall believes that there is no clear dominant team with the regulations, saying that the grid is a lot more competitve than what others have said.

Max Verstappen ended day one of winter testing in Bahrain in P2 behind Lando Norris - Red Bull Racing surprises rivals with Verstappen’s strong times - Photo: RacePictures

"Personally, I've not looked, so I couldn't comment. Clearly, the car looks pretty handy, that's for sure," the Brit started by saying to GPblog and others in Bahrain.

"To be perfectly honest, what I thought stood out the most is actually how competitive the grid looks, actually. I thought there was a very high chance that someone was going to come along with some package that aces it from the off, and it looks like that hasn't happened.

"It looks like there's a good gaggle of cars that are very competitive; it's a good thing. As I say, it's difficult to judge performance, but you can see it to a reasonable level.

"Especially when people start doing race distances, you can see more general trends of performance. So yeah, it looks like no one's going to run away with it, I don't think. So it's going to be a long haul.

Red Bull and Mercedes have early issues on day two

After an impressive first day in Bahrain, Red Bull's second day of testing was delayed due to an issue, meaning Isack Hadjar completed just one lap during the four-hour session to open the day.

The Frenchman will take to the track for the afternoon session, but for Kimi Antonelli, another issue hampered his testing week.

After a suspension issue curtailed his Monday running, he could only get three laps done on Tuesday morning after an engine issue forced him back into the garage.

Follow all the latest updates from the Bahrain test in GPblog’s live blog!

The second of three days of testing will resume with the afternoon session, with four more hours of running to come after this morning's session. Night-time conditions will take centre stage, offering weather conditions that are more representative and closer to what teams will face later in the season on race weekend.