Guenther Steiner believes Toto Wolff and Mercedes should stop providing engines to McLaren due to their growing rivalry.
McLaren have been using Mercedes engines since 2021, but it wasn’t until the second half of 2023 that they became a genuine contender again.
Zak Brown’s side then won the constructors’ title in 2024 before claiming both championships last year, which put Mercedes’ chassis performance under serious scrutiny.
Steiner criticises Wolff over supply of McLaren engines
Given their deeper knowledge of the new technology, Mercedes’ works status was initially seen as a key advantage when the current ruleset came into play. Early in that season, McLaren had difficulty getting the most out of their engine, which caused some minor friction between the teams.
The suggestion at the time was that Mercedes were not sharing all information to protect their own interests. However, since then, McLaren have significantly narrowed the gap and are now Mercedes’ closest rivals.
Lando Norris took second place behind Kimi Antonelli in Miami after leading a Sprint race one-two for McLaren – marking Mercedes’ first defeat of the season. Speaking on the Red Flags podcast, Steiner suggested Wolff could look for an ‘easy solution.’
McLaren’s agreement with Mercedes extends through to 2030, so any potential changes wouldn’t be immediate.
“If I was Toto, I would do that,” Steiner said. “It’s an easy solution to being beaten: ‘I don’t give you an engine anymore’.
“He can stop it. You need to supply engines by regulations, but you’re not obliged to do more than two – Alpine and Williams.
“Toto is a sportsman. He gives his best piece to his biggest opponent. I wouldn’t do it!
Now that they gave it to them, it would look embarrassing [to take it away]. It was not a good idea to go into the deal in the first place. Nobody thought McLaren would have this resurgence and be strong again.”
McLaren’s Engine Options if Mercedes Ends Partnership
According to off-season reports, there are people within Mercedes who want to end the McLaren partnership before the next cycle of rules changes.
As Steiner pointed out, they also supply Alpine and Williams, two teams with successful histories – in Alpine’s case back when they were Renault – but now more often found in the midfield.
If McLaren do end up needing a new engine supplier for 2030 and beyond, it’s hard to see Red Bull or Ferrari jumping at the chance, especially after watching Mercedes fuel a rival’s rise. That narrows things down quite a bit.
Honda could be an option, though there are obvious complications. Audi is another name that comes up, while General Motors plans to have an engine ready for Cadillac by 2029. But GM would be an unproven choice by then.
If Audi gets things right on their end, they might be McLaren’s best bet outside of building their own engine division, something Red Bull already has in place.
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