Mercedes is going with a two-part introduction this year, revealing a first look at the 2026 challenger — the W17 — on Thursday.

Mercedes has begun on-track work with its 2026 Formula 1 challenger, giving the W17 its first public outing at Silverstone as the sereies prepares for one of the most sweeping regulation changes in recent history.

Mercedes hit the track for the first time in Formula 1 in 2026 and underlined its favoritism with a strong day of running.

Bookmakers have Mercedes as an F1 2026 preseason favorite. It won dominantly with a great new engine in 2014, as these rules change again

Former Williams star Riccardo Patrese has defended Ford and Mercedes over allegations their power unit is illegal due to a compression ration loophole.

Mercedes, who had earlier released pictures of the ‍new livery and announced a major ​new sponsorship deal with Microsoft, said the W17 car completed 67 laps and nearly ​200km without ⁠any problems. "We have had a sensible first day of running with the W17 at Silverstone," said trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin.

Microsoft Corp. and the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team on Thursday announced a multiyear partnership that puts Microsoft’s technologies at the heart of race team operations. Through this new collaboration,

Race drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli gave the 2026 Mercedes Formula One car its track debut at a Silverstone filming day on Thursday before testing starts in Spain next week.

Mercedes driver George Russell said: "The cars looked really cool out on the circuit and that's positive for our sport. "They are quite different for us as drivers but, once you get your head around it, driving them is quite intuitive. "It's enjoyable being behind the wheel and there's a lot for fans to look forward to with these new regulations."