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Do McLaren Accept Reality of F1 - That to Win, You Can't Always Play Fair?

McLaren are fully conscious of the difficulty they encounter with Max Verstappen and Red Bull in the championship battle this year, but they don't believe to modify their approach to running the team.

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

"This is the manner we intend racing. This remains the method in which we tackle racing, and we aim to stay equitable, and we intend to maintain equal treatment to our drivers."

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

And he missed out on the title as engineer to Alonso in the 2010 season, when Ferrari messed up their strategy at the final race of the championship and allowed Vettel and the Red Bull team to sneak the championship from their grasp.

Andrea Stella said following the Grand Prix in Texas: "We look at the next five races as opportunities to increase the lead on Max. And when it involves having to make a call as to a driver, this will exclusively be led by the numbers."

"We lean on the experience. I can recall at least 2007, 2010, in which you reach the final Grand Prix and it's in fact the [driver in] third [place] that wins the championship. So we're not going to close the door unless this is closed by the calculations."

What Prompted McLaren to Stop Development on The Current Car?

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

In Formula 1, it's typically the case that if a constructor makes mistakes at the beginning of a new rules cycle, it can take a considerable period to catch up. And if they get it right, that advantage can continue for some time - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the last time the regulations were modified.

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

They continued to develop it for a while, but were finding reduced benefits. So when looking at the value for money they were getting on their 2025 season car compared to 2026, it became an straightforward choice to redirect attention to next year.

Red Bull have caught up since introducing their new floor and front wing at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren remains competitive - team principal Stella stated he believed Norris had the pace to challenge for the win in Austin had he not finished following Charles Leclerc.

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

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

Driver Transfers: How Difficult Is It to Change Constructors?

Initially, it's uncertain the question has an completely accurate premise. It's true that each of Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had somewhat difficult opening phases of the season, in varying manners, and that they are now faring much better.

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

Hamilton has failed to outperform Leclerc very often at all this year, either in qualifying sessions or race.

He is currently much closer than he previously. He is consistently qualifying within a small fraction of a second of Leclerc, but in qualifying it's four-two to Charles Leclerc since the mid-season break.

This last weekend in Texas, on one of Hamilton's preferred circuits, he was a second behind his teammate when the Monaco driver completed his pit stop, and lost 13 seconds over the rest of the race.

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

Each of Hamilton and Sainz have talked about how challenging it is to change constructors, and we have to take them at their word.

Lewis Hamilton would not say 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 really enjoyed these venturi cars.

There is a great deal for a driver to get their head around when they switch teams, as Hamilton has described many times this season. But not all struggle in this way.

Alonso, for example, was performing well from the beginning of the 2023 when he transferred to the Aston Martin team. And would Max Verstappen struggle if he changed constructors? I believe most in F1 would expect not.

When Will We Know Next Year's Team Performance?

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

The first test, in Barcelona on 26-30 January, is private 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 February 11-13 and 18-20 February will be the initial occasion a certain indication of relative performance emerges.

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