McLaren and Ferrari have dealt themselves another damaging blow ahead of Barcelona F1 test

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McLaren and Ferrari will not be at the first day of pre-season testing in Barcelona next week, which could prove costly for their 2026 preparations.

In their defence, at least their projects are up and running. Williams will not be in Barcelona at all, having encountered suspected chassis issues.

McLaren and Ferrari have opted to sit out the first day of testing to maximise development and give the engineers more time to refine the final details of their cars. That all sounds well and good, but it limits their track time and subsequent data collection.

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Several teams have already run shakedown sessions for their 2026 challengers, including Audi, Alpine, Cadillac and Mercedes. Ferrari have completed a test as well, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc driving the SF-26 at Fiorano on Friday.

This puts them ahead of McLaren in terms of preparation, who are yet to unveil the MCL40’s livery, let alone test it on track. But come Barcelona, both teams will be on the back foot after the first day.

Gary Anderson says missing day one of testing in Barcelona will ‘delay’ development for 2026

Writing in a column for The Race, former F1 engineer Gary Anderson detailed the importance of running a shakedown session either before Barcelona testing or on the first day of the ‘actual test’.

He says that ‘ideally’, each team will have accomplished this by this point – as aforementioned, Ferrari already have. However, the other outfits that have completed shakedown sessions before Barcelona will do so again and collect valuable data.

Anderson says that using the first day as a shakedown will “delay you getting into the work that those teams who have already completed their shakedown should be able to dive straight into.”

Furthermore, he says it is “better to commit to a 200km filming day” as, if problems come up, teams can work out the issues and not make drastic decisions such as changing a part. As McLaren and Ferrari will not hit the track at all on day one, they are already behind.

They are missing out on valuable mileage and data that will help their efforts in 2026. Even when they do take to the track in Barcelona, they could have even more problems.

Wet conditions could scupper McLaren and Ferrari as rain is forecast after the first day of testing. This, combined with teams gaining more kilometres and telemetry, makes their decision not to run even more damaging.

READ MORE: All you need to know about McLaren F1 Team from team principal to engine

Formula 1’s plan for the Barcelona test has already failed

F1 will hold the Barcelona test behind closed doors. The reason for this has not been made clear, and theories about why make it all the more confusing.

F1 will want to avoid the ‘PR disaster’ of the first 2014 test at Jerez, when minimal laps were completed and several teams did not get out on track on day one. In many ways, this has already been repeated in 2026, with Williams not attending and McLaren and Ferrari missing the first day.

What’s more is that the plan has already failed. The Barcelona test will be broadcast anyway, with fans getting a daily round-up from Ted Kravitz in the paddock.

It makes the whole point of making the test behind closed doors utterly ridiculous. But the reality is that no one will truly know where the teams are until they hit the track in Australia.