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Do McLaren Face the Truth of F1 - That to Win, You Can't Always Be Fair?

McLaren are fully conscious of the obstacle they confront with Max Verstappen and Red Bull in the drivers' championship this season, but they don't believe to alter their strategy to running the team.

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

"This is the manner we plan racing. This remains the way in which we approach competition, and we want to stay equitable, and we want to apply equal treatment to both drivers."

Team principal Stella is a seasoned expert of numerous championship fights. He claimed the championship as engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari racer made up seventeen points under the previous points system in two races to win the title, while the McLaren team collapsed.

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

Andrea Stella commented following the race in Austin: "We view the remaining five Grands Prix as chances to extend the gap on Verstappen. And when it comes to having to make a decision as to a team driver, this will only be determined by the numbers."

"We rely on the experience. I can remember at least the 2007 season, 2010, in which you go to the final Grand Prix and it's actually the third-placed driver that claims the championship. So we're not going to make decisions unless this is determined by mathematics."

Why Did McLaren Stop Development on This Year's Car?

All teams this year 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 significant regulation change scheduled for 2026.

In F1, it's usually the situation that if a constructor gets it wrong at the start of a new regulation period, it can take a considerable period to catch up. And if they succeed, that benefit can continue for some time - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the rules changed.

The McLaren team started this year with the best car, after putting a lot of innovation into their 2025 design.

They did continue to develop it for a period, but were finding reduced benefits. So when looking at the value for money they were getting on their 2025 car compared to the 2026 car, it became an straightforward decision to switch focus to next year.

The Red Bull team have closed the gap since introducing their updated underfloor and front wing at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren car remains competitive - team boss Andrea Stella stated he believed Lando Norris had the speed to challenge for the win in Texas had he not finished following Charles Leclerc.

"We must continue optimising the car performance and continue delivering good race weekends. And from this point of view, if you think of a race like Baku, we failed to optimize the car's potential and we didn't execute a perfect performance."

"So definitely we have a significant opportunity, and the outcome of this season and the driver's title is in our control. It's not placed in another team's control."

Driver Transfers: How Challenging Is It to Switch Teams?

First of all, it's uncertain the question has an completely correct premise. It's correct that each of Lewis Hamilton and Sainz had somewhat difficult first halves of the championship, in varying manners, and that they are now faring significantly improved.

Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon currently appear very even. However, it's not so clear that, in Hamilton's case, he is yet the "match" of Charles Leclerc - or not regularly, anyway.

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

He is now 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 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 optimal race strategy. Regardless, over the season, and even currently, it's difficult to argue that on balance Leclerc has hasn't been the better Ferrari driver this year.

Both Hamilton and Carlos Sainz have discussed how challenging 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 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 racing driver to understand and adapt to when they switch teams, as Hamilton has explained repeatedly this season. But not all struggle in this way.

Fernando Alonso, for instance, was on it from the start of the 2023 when he transferred to the Aston Martin team. And would Verstappen struggle if he switched teams? I believe the majority in F1 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 season, no-one will know how the constructors are performing in the upcoming season.

The initial session, in Barcelona on January 26-30, is private because the constructors wanted to understand their first running of the new engines without the prying eyes of the media.

So the two tests in Sakhir on 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion some kind of sense of comparative speed becomes apparent.

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