Can McLaren Continue Maintaining Fair Play and Stop Max Verstappen? - Formula 1 Q&A

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

McLaren are well aware of the obstacle they face with Max Verstappen and Red Bull in the drivers' championship this season, but they see no reason to change their strategy to running the team.

They will persist to give their two drivers the optimal opportunity they can and operate the team on a foundation of equity and balance.

"This is the way we plan racing. This remains the method in which we approach competition, and we want to remain equitable, and we want to apply equal treatment to our drivers."

Team boss Stella is a veteran of many championship fights. He claimed the championship as race engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari driver made up 17 points under the previous points system in two Grands Prix to win the title, while McLaren collapsed.

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

Andrea Stella said following the Grand Prix in Austin: "We view the remaining five Grands Prix as chances to extend the lead on Verstappen. And when it comes to having to make a call as to a team driver, this will only be led by the numbers."

"We rely on the experience. I can remember at least 2007, the 2010 season, in which you go to the last race and it's actually the [driver in] third [place] that wins the championship. So we're not going to make decisions 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 car while also ensuring they are as prepared as they can be for the major regulation change scheduled for 2026.

In F1, it's usually the situation that if a team makes mistakes at the beginning of a new regulation period, it can take a long time to catch up. And if they succeed, that benefit can last for a while - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the last time the regulations were modified.

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

They did continue to develop it for a period, but were experiencing reduced benefits. So when evaluating the bang for buck they were achieving on their 2025 car versus the 2026 car, it became an easy choice to switch focus to next year.

The Red Bull team have closed the gap since introducing their new underfloor and front wing at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren stays competitive - team principal Andrea Stella said he thought Norris had the speed to compete for the win in Austin had he not ended up behind Charles Leclerc.

"We just have to continue maximising the car performance and continue delivering good weekends. And from this perspective, if you think of a race like Baku City Circuit, we failed to optimize the performance and we didn't deliver a perfect performance."

"So definitely we have a significant chance, and the result of this championship and the drivers' championship is in our hands. It's not placed in another team's control."

Team Changes: How Difficult Is It to Change Constructors?

Initially, I'm not sure the inquiry has an completely accurate basis. It's correct that both Lewis Hamilton and Sainz had somewhat difficult first halves of the championship, in varying manners, and that they are now performing significantly improved.

Sainz and Albon do now appear quite balanced. However, it's less certain that, in Lewis Hamilton's case, he is currently the "match" of Leclerc - or not regularly, anyway.

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

He is now significantly nearer than he was. He is regularly setting times within a small fraction of a second of Leclerc, 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 full second behind his teammate when the Monaco driver made his tire change, and lost thirteen seconds over the remaining portion of the Grand Prix.

Looking back, Leclerc was on the best strategy. Nevertheless, over the season, and even now, it's difficult to argue that on average Leclerc has hasn't been the better Ferrari racer this year.

Both Hamilton and Sainz have discussed how difficult it is to switch teams, and we have to accept their statements.

Hamilton would not claim even currently that he was completely adjusted to the Ferrari car - and he is expecting the regulation changes next season will benefit his driving style; he has never particularly liked these ground-effect vehicles.

There is a lot for a driver to understand and adapt to when they change constructors, as Lewis Hamilton has described many times this year. But not every driver struggle in this way.

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

How Soon Can We Determine Next Year's Competitive Order?

Before the cars are driven for the first time in pre-season testing next season, no-one will understand how the teams are looking in the upcoming season.

The first test, in Barcelona on 26-30 January, is private because the constructors wanted to get their heads around their first running of the new engines without the scrutiny of the media.

So the pair of sessions in Sakhir on February 11-13 and 18-20 February will be the first time some kind of indication of relative performance emerges.

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