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McLaren have been ranked as the fourth-best team in Formula 1 after the first three-day test at the Bahrain International Circuit.
The first of the Bahrain Formula 1 Tests has revealed an early team ranking ahead of the start of the 2026 season in Australia, with McLaren finding themselves in a surprising position.
There will be a further three days of testing at the Bahrain International Circuit next week, where teams will get one last chance to finalise their packages for the season opener.
Across the three days, an early idea was gained on who could be the title contenders during the 2026 Formula 1 season, with Ferrari currently leading the way after the first Bahrain Test.
However, McLaren were the major talking point after the test as they found themselves further down the order than was expected.
The first pecking order predictions are IN!
What jumps out?
READ MORE: All you need to know about McLaren F1 Team from team principal to engine
Andrea Stella admits McLaren are the fourth-best team
After the first three-day test at Bahrain International Circuit, Sky Sports’ Craig Slater and Ted Kravitz discussed the Formula 1 pecking order.
The duo both agreed that currently, Ferrari leads the way ahead of the start of the Formula 1 season in March, but the rest of the top teams were up for debate.
There are questions about whether Mercedes are currently sandbagging and have more than they have shown during the first Bahrain Test.
However, the main shock from the three days was that the reigning champions, McLaren, found themselves in fourth place in the rankings.
Kravitz said, “At the moment, it is Ferrari one, and Mercedes two, but sandbags? There are also question marks about Red Bull being third or fourth, and which Red Bull?
“We have seen from this test that it is the case again that when you talk about Red Bull and the pecking order, there is Red Bull Max and Red Bull Isack. Some people are putting Red Bull Max as equal to Mercedes in second, if not very close behind.
“But Mercedes are saying their energy recovery system is the best out of anybody’s and is delivering good power without having any kind of drawback of where it generates, it generates very efficiently and deploys brilliantly.
“They are also saying, we have not seen a definitive race run for Max Verstappen, in the same conditions that we saw from: Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Kimi Antonelli, and George Russell.”
Slater added, “It is difficult to say whether Red Bull is a little bit higher than they potentially are, or if they are ahead of McLaren at this stage.”
Kravitz went on to say, “But McLaren, by Andrea Stella’s own admission tonight, are fourth. With the caveat that he is not quite sure about Verstappen, but he is sure that Ferrari and Mercedes are ahead of McLaren.
“That is the top story for me. Last year’s runaway champions, with the same engine as Mercedes, are fourth in the pecking order; that is what we are being told.”
Kimi Antonelli made a serious statement on Day 3 at the first 2026 Bahrain test – Who looks strongest heading into Round 1?
Internal McLaren battle continues into the 2026 Formula 1 season
During the 2025 Formula 1 season, there was an internal title battle in McLaren as eventual Champion, Lando Norris, and Oscar Piastri went head-to-head for the majority of the season.
The duo will be heading into their fourth season as teammates for the Woking-based squad, and, even though the team may be lower than expected, Piastri will be aiming to beat Norris.
Former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has backed Piastri to beat Norris in the 2026 season after he has closed the gap every year during their time as teammates.
However, Norris is also expecting Piastri to make another step this year, and their ‘awkward dynamic’ as teammates will continue for another season.
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