🔗 Share this article

Do McLaren Accept Reality of F1 - That to Win, You Can't Always Be Fair?

McLaren are well aware of the challenge they encounter with Max Verstappen and Red Bull in the championship battle this year, but they see no reason to modify their strategy to managing the team.

They will persist to provide their two drivers the optimal opportunity they can and run the team on a foundation of fairness and equanimity.

"This is the manner we intend racing. This remains the way in which we tackle racing, and we aim to remain fair, and we want to maintain equal treatment to our drivers."

Team principal Andrea Stella is a seasoned expert of numerous title battles. He won the title as engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari racer recovered 17 points under the previous points system in two races to win the title, while McLaren imploded.

And he missed out on the title as race engineer to Alonso in the 2010 season, when Ferrari made errors in their race strategy at the final race of the season and allowed Vettel and the Red Bull team to sneak the title from their grasp.

Stella stated following the Grand Prix in Texas: "We view the next five races as opportunities to extend the lead on Verstappen. And when it comes to having to make a call as to a driver, this will exclusively be determined by mathematics."

"We lean on the past experience. I can recall at least the 2007 season, the 2010 season, in which you go to the last race and it's in fact the [driver in] third [place] that wins the title. So we're not going to close the door unless this is determined by the calculations."

What Prompted McLaren to Cease Upgrades on The Current Car?

Every team this year have had to confront the dilemma of for how long to concentrate on their 2025 season car while also making sure they are as ready as they can be for the significant rules overhaul scheduled for the 2026 season.

In F1, it's typically the case that if a constructor makes mistakes at the beginning of a new regulation period, it can take a long time to catch up. And if they get it right, that advantage can last for a while - consider the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the rules were modified.

The McLaren team began this season with the best car, after investing a lot of innovation into their 2025 season design.

They continued to develop it for a period, but were finding reduced benefits. So when looking at the bang for buck they were getting on their 2025 season car compared to the 2026 car, it became an easy decision to redirect attention to next year.

The Red Bull team have caught up since introducing their updated floor and front wing at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren stays competitive - team principal Stella stated he believed Norris had the speed to compete for the win in Texas had he not finished behind Leclerc.

"We must continue maximising the car performance and continue executing good race weekends. And from this perspective, if you consider a Grand Prix like Baku City Circuit, we failed to optimize the performance and we didn't deliver a flawless race."

"So definitely we have a large chance, and the result of this season and the driver's title is in our hands. It's not placed in someone else's hands."

Driver Transfers: How Difficult Is It to Switch Teams?

Initially, I'm not sure the question has an entirely correct basis. It's true that each of Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had somewhat difficult first halves of the championship, in different ways, and that they are currently performing significantly improved.

Sainz and Albon currently look quite balanced. However, it's not so clear that, in Hamilton's case, he is currently the "equal" of Leclerc - or not consistently, anyway.

Hamilton has failed to outperform Charles Leclerc frequently at all this year, either in qualifying or Grand Prix.

He is now significantly nearer than he was. He is regularly qualifying within a small fraction of a second of Leclerc, but in qualifying it's four-two to Charles Leclerc since the summer break.

This previous weekend in Austin, on one of Hamilton's favourite tracks, he was a full second behind his teammate when the Monaco driver completed his tire change, and dropped 13 seconds over the remaining portion of the race.

Looking back, Leclerc was on the best race strategy. Regardless, over the championship, and even now, it's hard to argue that on average Charles Leclerc has not been the better Ferrari racer this year.

Each of Lewis Hamilton and Sainz have discussed how difficult it is to change constructors, and we have to take them at their word.

Lewis Hamilton would not claim even currently that he was fully adapted to Ferrari - and he is expecting the new rules next season will benefit his driving style; he has never particularly liked these venturi cars.

There is a lot for a driver to get their head around when they change constructors, as Hamilton has explained repeatedly this season. But not all struggle in this manner.

Fernando Alonso, for example, was performing well from the beginning of the 2023 season when he transferred to Aston Martin. And would Verstappen face challenges if he switched teams? I suspect most in F1 would anticipate he wouldn't.

When Will We Know Next Year's Competitive Order?

Until the F1 cars are driven for the initial time in pre-season testing next season, no-one will understand how the teams are performing next year.

The first test, in Catalunya on 26-30 January, is private because the teams wanted to understand their first running of the power unit changes without the prying eyes of the press.

So the two tests in Sakhir on February 11-13 and 18-20 February will be the first time a certain sense of comparative speed emerges.

But, as ever, it's only at the season opener that the true and accurate situation will emerge.