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Must McLaren Accept Reality of F1 - That if You Want Win, It's Not Always Possible to Play Fair?

The McLaren team are fully conscious of the challenge they encounter with Max Verstappen and the Red Bull team in the championship battle this year, but they don't believe to change their strategy to managing the team.

They will persist to give their two drivers the best chance they can and run the team on a foundation of fairness and balance.

"This is the manner we intend racing. This is the method in which we approach competition, and we want to remain fair, and we intend to apply equal treatment to our drivers."

Team principal Andrea Stella is a seasoned expert of numerous title battles. He claimed the title as race engineer to Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari racer recovered seventeen points under the old scoring system in two races to secure the championship, while the McLaren team collapsed.

And he missed out on the title as race engineer to Alonso in 2010, when Ferrari 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 their grasp.

Andrea Stella said following the race in Texas: "We view the remaining five Grands Prix as opportunities to extend the lead on Max. And when it involves having to make a decision as to a team driver, this will only be determined by the numbers."

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

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

All teams this season have had to confront the dilemma of how long to focus on their 2025 season car while also making sure they are as prepared as they can be for the major rules overhaul scheduled for the 2026 season.

In Formula 1, it's usually the case that if a team gets it wrong at the start of a new rules cycle, it can take a long time to catch up. And if they get it right, that benefit can continue for some time - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the last time the regulations changed.

The McLaren team began this season with the fastest car, after putting a lot of technical development into their 2025 design.

They did continue to develop it for a period, but were finding reduced benefits. So when evaluating the bang for buck they were achieving on their 2025 season car versus 2026, it became an straightforward decision to redirect attention to the following season.

The Red Bull team have closed the gap since bringing their new floor and nose section at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren remains competitive - team principal Stella said he believed Lando Norris had the pace to compete for the win in Austin had he not finished behind Leclerc.

"We just have to continue maximising the performance and continue executing strong race 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 deliver a flawless race."

"So definitely we have a large opportunity, and the outcome of this championship and the drivers' championship is in our hands. It's not placed in someone else's hands."

Team Changes: How Challenging Is It to Switch Teams?

Initially, I'm not sure the inquiry has an entirely correct premise. It's true that both Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had somewhat difficult first halves of the championship, in varying manners, and that they are currently faring significantly improved.

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

Lewis Hamilton has not beaten Charles Leclerc frequently at all this season, either in qualifying or race.

He is currently significantly nearer than he previously. He is regularly setting times within a small fraction of a second of Leclerc, but in qualifying battles it's 4-2 to Leclerc since the summer break.

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

Looking back, Leclerc was on the best race strategy. Nevertheless, over the championship, and even currently, it's difficult to argue that on average Charles Leclerc has not been the superior Ferrari driver this year.

Each of Lewis Hamilton and Sainz have discussed how difficult it is to change constructors, and we have to accept their statements.

Lewis Hamilton would not say even currently that he was completely adjusted to Ferrari - and he is hoping the regulation changes next year will suit him; he has never particularly liked these venturi cars.

There is a lot for a racing driver to understand and adapt to when they change constructors, as Hamilton has described repeatedly this season. But not every driver struggle in this way.

Alonso, for example, was on it from the beginning of the 2023 season when he transferred to Aston Martin. And would Verstappen struggle if he switched teams? I suspect most in F1 would expect not.

How Soon Can We Determine The Coming Season's Competitive Order?

Before the F1 cars are driven for the initial time in pre-season testing next season, nobody will know how the teams are looking in the upcoming season.

The first test, in Catalunya on January 26-30, is behind closed doors because the teams wanted to get their heads around their first running of the new engines without the prying eyes of the media.

So the two tests in Sakhir on February 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the first time some kind of sense of relative performance emerges.

But, as always, it's not until the first race that the true and accurate situation will become clear.