McLaren boss confesses to ‘poison' cookie mind games

McLaren chief executive Zak Brown has suggested that a key part of competing at the highest level in Formula 1 is finding ways to unsettle rival teams.

Under Brown’s leadership, McLaren has surged back to the front of the grid, securing consecutive Constructors’ Championships in both 2024 and 2025.

The 2025 campaign also delivered a landmark double for the team, with Lando Norris claiming the drivers’ title. It marked McLaren’s first drivers’ championship since Lewis Hamilton’s triumph in 2008 and their first championship double since 1998.

All of that success has been masterminded by Brown and team principal Andrea Stella, with the team looking like one of the slowest teams on the grid at the start of the 2023 season.

It's been a remarkable turnaround, and Brown has suggested that it has not just involved bringing McLaren up in terms of their performance, but also attempting to bring other teams down with what Stella apparently describes as 'poison biscuits'.

"I mean, you’re fighting hard, which I think is one of the things that Drive to Survive shows so well is our sport, the competition off the field is as great as it is on the field, and it’s very political," Brown told TalkSPORT.

"Andrea, our team principal, calls it poison biscuits because you are trying… and you see it with the drivers, right? They talk trash to each other, and that’s all mental to try and kind of get in each other’s heads and we do that at every level."

Will McLaren remain competitive in 2026?

New regulations sweeping into the sport in 2026 might make it trickier for the McLaren team to win more championships.

The team dominated the 2025 season, winning 14 of 24 grands prix, but 2026 could see a complete shake up of the competitive order with one of the largest regulations resets ever seen.

Mercedes are rumoured to be best placed to master the regulations, but McLaren will still hope to be there or there abouts when it comes to race victories in 2026.

Stella has previously said that he believes that the team will still be competitive in 2026, with the Italian praising the work of some of the most senior technicians and engineers at the Woking-based outfit.

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