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

The McLaren team are well aware of the challenge they confront with Max Verstappen and the Red Bull team in the drivers' championship this year, but they don't believe to alter their approach to managing the team.

They will persist to provide their two drivers the optimal opportunity they can and operate the team on a basis of equity and equanimity.

"This represents the approach we intend competing. This remains the way in which we approach competition, and we aim to stay fair, and we want to maintain equal treatment to our drivers."

Team principal Stella is a seasoned expert of numerous title battles. He claimed the championship as race engineer to Raikkonen in 2007 when the Ferrari driver made up seventeen points under the previous points system in two Grands Prix to secure the championship, while the McLaren team imploded.

And he lost the title as engineer to Fernando Alonso in the 2010 season, when the Ferrari team made errors in their race strategy at the last Grand Prix of the season and enabled Vettel and the Red Bull team to snatch the title from under their noses.

Andrea Stella commented after the race in Austin: "We look at the next five races as chances to extend the gap on Verstappen. And when it comes to having to make a decision as to a driver, this will only be determined by mathematics."

"We lean on the experience. I can remember at least the 2007 season, 2010, in which you reach the last race and it's actually the third-placed driver that wins the championship. So we're not going to close the door unless this is determined by the calculations."

Why Did McLaren Cease Upgrades on The Current Car?

All teams this year have had to confront the dilemma of for how long to concentrate on their 2025 season car while also ensuring they are as prepared as they can be for the major rules overhaul coming for the 2026 season.

In Formula 1, it's typically the situation that if a team makes mistakes at the beginning of a new rules cycle, it can take a long time to catch up. And if they succeed, that advantage can last for a while - consider Red Bull in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the regulations were modified.

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

They did continue to develop it for a period, but were experiencing diminishing returns. So when looking at the bang for buck they were getting on their 2025 season car versus 2026, it became an easy decision to redirect attention to next year.

The Red Bull team have caught up since bringing their updated floor and nose section at the Monza Grand Prix, but the McLaren car remains competitive - team principal Stella said he believed Lando Norris had the speed to challenge for the win in Austin had he not ended up behind Charles Leclerc.

"We just have to keep optimising the performance and keep delivering good weekends. And from this point of view, if you think of a race like Baku City Circuit, we didn't maximise the performance and we didn't execute a flawless performance."

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

Driver Transfers: How Challenging Is It to Switch Teams?

First of all, I'm not sure the question has an entirely correct basis. It's true that each of Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had somewhat sticky first halves of the championship, in varying manners, and that they are currently faring significantly improved.

Carlos Sainz and Albon do now look very even. However, it's less certain that, in Lewis Hamilton's case, he is currently the "equal" of Leclerc - or not consistently, anyway.

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

He is currently significantly nearer than he was. He is consistently setting times within a few hundredths of a second of his teammate, but in qualifying it's four-two to Leclerc since the summer break.

This previous weekend in Texas, on one of Lewis Hamilton's preferred tracks, he was a second behind Leclerc when the Monegasque made his tire change, and lost thirteen seconds over the remaining portion of the Grand Prix.

Looking back, Charles Leclerc was on the best race strategy. Regardless, over the season, and even currently, it's difficult to claim that on balance Leclerc has not been the better Ferrari driver this season.

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

Hamilton would not claim even now that he was fully adapted to Ferrari - and he is expecting the new rules next year will suit him; 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 Lewis Hamilton has explained repeatedly this year. But not every driver faces difficulties in this manner.

Alonso, for example, was on it from the beginning of the 2023 when he moved to the Aston Martin team. And would Max Verstappen face challenges if he changed constructors? I suspect most in Formula 1 would anticipate he wouldn't.

When Will We Know Next Year's Team Performance?

Before the F1 cars run for the first time in winter testing next year, no-one will know how the constructors are performing in the upcoming season.

The first test, in Catalunya on January 26-30, is behind closed doors because the constructors wanted to understand their first running of the power unit changes without the scrutiny of the media.

So the two tests in Bahrain on February 11-13 and 18-20 February will be the first time a certain indication of comparative speed becomes apparent.

But, as ever, it's not until the first race that the complete and precise situation will emerge.