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

The McLaren team are well aware of the obstacle they encounter with Verstappen and Red Bull in the drivers' championship this year, but they don't believe to modify their strategy to managing the team.

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

"This is the way we intend competing. This is the method in which we approach racing, and we want to stay fair, and we intend to maintain equal treatment to both drivers."

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

And he lost the championship as engineer to Alonso in the 2010 season, when Ferrari messed up their strategy at the last Grand Prix of the championship and allowed Sebastian Vettel and the Red Bull team to sneak the championship from under their noses.

Andrea Stella stated after the Grand Prix in Texas: "We view the next five races as opportunities to extend the gap on Verstappen. And when it involves 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, the 2010 season, in which you reach the final Grand Prix and it's actually the third-placed driver that claims the title. So we're not going to close the door unless this is determined by the calculations."

What Prompted McLaren to Cease Upgrades on This Year's Car?

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

In Formula 1, it's typically the case that if a team makes mistakes at the beginning of a new regulation period, it can take a considerable period to recover. And if they succeed, that advantage can last for a while - look at Red Bull in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the rules changed.

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

They did continue to improve it for a while, but were finding diminishing returns. So when looking at the value for money they were achieving on their 2025 season car compared to the 2026 car, it became an straightforward choice to switch focus to next year.

The Red Bull team have caught up since bringing their updated floor and front wing at the Monza Grand Prix, but the McLaren car stays competitive - team boss Andrea Stella said he believed Norris had the pace to challenge for the win in Austin had he not finished following Leclerc.

"We just have to keep optimising the car performance and continue executing 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 result of this season and the drivers' championship is in our hands. It's not placed in someone else's hands."

Driver Transfers: How Challenging Is It to Change Constructors?

Initially, it's uncertain the inquiry has an entirely accurate premise. It's true that each of Hamilton and Sainz had somewhat sticky opening phases of the season, in different ways, and that they are now faring significantly improved.

Sainz and Alex Albon currently appear very even. However, it's not so clear that, in Hamilton's case, he is currently 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 currently significantly nearer than he previously. He is consistently qualifying within a small fraction of a second of Leclerc, but in qualifying it's 4-2 to Leclerc since the mid-season break.

This last weekend in Texas, on one of Hamilton's preferred circuits, he was a full second behind Leclerc when the Monegasque made his pit stop, and lost 13 seconds over the remaining portion of the race.

In hindsight, Charles Leclerc was on the best strategy. Regardless, over the season, and even currently, it's difficult to claim that on average Leclerc has not been the superior Ferrari driver this year.

Each of Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz have talked about how difficult it is to switch teams, and we have to accept their statements.

Hamilton would not say even currently that he was fully adapted to the Ferrari car - and he is hoping the regulation changes next season will benefit his driving style; he has never really enjoyed these venturi cars.

There is a lot for a driver to get their head around when they change constructors, as Hamilton has described many times this year. But not all faces difficulties in this way.

Alonso, for example, was performing well from the beginning of the 2023 season when he moved to Aston Martin. And would Max Verstappen face challenges if he switched teams? I suspect most in F1 would expect not.

How Soon Can We Determine The Coming Season's Team Performance?

Until the F1 cars are driven for the first time in pre-season testing next season, no-one will understand how the constructors are performing next year.

The initial session, in Catalunya on January 26-30, is behind closed doors because the constructors preferred to get their heads around their initial track time of the power unit changes 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 a certain sense of comparative speed becomes apparent.

But, as ever, it's only at the season opener that the complete and precise situation will emerge.