🔗 Share this article

Do McLaren Face the Truth of F1 - That to Win, It's Not Always Possible to Be Fair?

McLaren are fully conscious of the obstacle they encounter with Max Verstappen and the Red Bull team in the drivers' championship this season, but they see no reason to alter their approach to managing the team.

They will continue to give their two drivers the optimal opportunity they can and operate the team on a basis of fairness and balance.

"This represents the way we intend competing. This remains the philosophy in which we tackle competition, and we want to remain equitable, and we want to apply equality to our drivers."

Team boss Andrea Stella is a seasoned expert of many title battles. He won the championship as engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in 2007 when the Ferrari driver recovered 17 points under the old scoring system in two Grands Prix to secure the title, while McLaren collapsed.

And he lost the title as race engineer to Alonso in the 2010 season, when Ferrari messed up their race strategy at the final race of the season and allowed Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull to snatch the championship from under their noses.

Stella said after the Grand Prix in Austin: "We view the next five races as chances to extend the lead on Max. And when it involves having to make a decision as to a driver, this will exclusively be led by the numbers."

"We lean on the past experience. I can remember at least the 2007 season, 2010, in which you go to the final Grand Prix and it's actually the [driver in] third [place] that wins the title. So we're not going to close the door unless this is closed by mathematics."

What Prompted McLaren to Stop Upgrades on This Year's Car?

Every team this season have had to face the conundrum of how long to focus on their 2025 car while also making sure they are as ready as they can be for the significant regulation change coming for the 2026 season.

In Formula 1, it's typically the case that if a constructor gets it wrong at the beginning of a new rules cycle, it can take a considerable period to recover. And if they get it right, that benefit can last for a while - consider Red Bull in 2022 and 2023, the last time the regulations changed.

McLaren began this year with the best car, after putting a lot of technical development into their 2025 design.

They did continue to develop it for a while, but were experiencing reduced benefits. So when looking at the value for money they were achieving on their 2025 car versus the 2026 car, it became an easy decision to redirect attention to next year.

The Red Bull team have caught up since bringing their new floor and front wing at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren car stays competitive - team boss Andrea Stella stated he believed Lando Norris had the pace to compete for the win in Austin had he not finished behind Leclerc.

"We just have to keep optimising the car performance and continue executing strong weekends. And from this point of view, if you think of a Grand Prix like Baku City Circuit, we didn't maximise the performance and we didn't execute a perfect performance."

"Therefore we have a significant opportunity, and the result of this season and the drivers' championship is in our control. It's not placed in another team's control."

Driver Transfers: How Difficult Is It to Change Constructors?

Initially, I'm not sure the inquiry has an entirely accurate basis. It's correct that each of Hamilton and Sainz had somewhat difficult opening phases of the season, in varying manners, and that they are now faring significantly improved.

Sainz and Albon currently appear very even. However, it's less certain that, in Lewis Hamilton's case, he is yet the "equal" of Charles Leclerc - or not consistently, at least.

Hamilton has not beaten Leclerc frequently at all this year, either in qualifying sessions or Grand Prix.

He is now much closer than he previously. He is regularly qualifying within a small fraction of a second of his teammate, but in qualifying it's 4-2 to Charles Leclerc since the mid-season break.

This previous weekend in Austin, on one of Hamilton's preferred circuits, he was a full second behind Leclerc when the Monegasque made his tire change, and dropped 13 seconds over the rest of the Grand Prix.

In hindsight, Leclerc was on the best race strategy. Regardless, over the championship, and even currently, it's hard to argue that on balance Leclerc has not been the better Ferrari driver this year.

Both Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz have discussed how difficult it is to switch teams, and we have to take them at their word.

Lewis Hamilton would not claim even now that he was completely adjusted to the Ferrari car - and he is hoping the new rules next season will benefit his driving style; he has never particularly liked these venturi cars.

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

Fernando Alonso, for example, was performing well from the start of the 2023 when he transferred to the Aston Martin team. And would Verstappen struggle if he changed constructors? I suspect the majority in Formula 1 would expect not.

How Soon Can We Determine Next Year's Team Performance?

Until the F1 cars run for the initial time in winter testing next season, nobody will know how the teams are looking next year.

The initial session, in Barcelona on 26-30 January, is behind closed doors because the teams preferred to understand their first running of the power unit changes without the prying eyes of the press.

So the pair of sessions in Sakhir on 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion a certain sense of comparative speed emerges.

But, as always, it's only at the season opener that the true and accurate picture will become clear.