McLaren's China F1 Debacle: Battery Issues Derail Title Defense

0:00It's March 27th. This is F1 News Today Team News, powered by AI. McLaren's title defense in Formula 1's 2026 season has hit Rot bottom early on. Oscar Piaustre still hasn't started a single Grand Prix, and Lando Norris failed to even reach the grid in China. It's the first time both cars sat out of race since the 2005 United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis. That event takes us back to a tire drama, where teams withdrew after the formation lap. Go further to 1966, McLaren's rookie year, when engine woes kept both cars sidelined before the action even began. Team boss Andreas Stella called the China Weekend tough and rare. Neither car made it due to separate battery issues in their Mercedes power units, hitting at the same time. One was fixable, the other permanently damaged by a software glitch. Stella expressed full trust in Mercedes engineers, who have already applied fixes to prevent repeats. The team investigated closely with their partner, and expects no more headaches.

1:03Now they're gearing up for Japan, hoping for a clean run, and finally getting Piaustre some race laps to turn this rough start around.