Can the McLaren team Keep Playing Fair and Stop Verstappen? - Formula 1 Questions and Answers

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

McLaren are well aware of the obstacle they encounter with Verstappen and the Red Bull team in the championship battle this season, but they don't believe to alter their approach to running the team.

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

"This is the manner we intend racing. This is the philosophy in which we tackle competition, and we aim to stay equitable, and we intend to apply equal treatment to our drivers."

Team principal Andrea Stella is a seasoned expert of many title battles. He claimed the championship as race engineer to Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari driver made up seventeen points under the previous points system in two races to win the championship, while the McLaren team imploded.

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

Andrea Stella commented following the Grand Prix in Austin: "We view the next five races as chances to extend the lead on Max. And when it comes to having to make a call as to a team driver, this will only be determined 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 claims the title. So we're not going to make decisions unless this is closed by mathematics."

What Prompted McLaren to Stop Upgrades on The Current Car?

Every team this year have had to confront the conundrum of how long to focus on their 2025 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 long time to recover. And if they get it right, that benefit can continue for some time - consider Red Bull in 2022 and 2023, the last time the regulations changed.

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

They continued to develop it for a while, 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 decision to redirect attention to next year.

The Red Bull team have caught up since introducing their new underfloor and nose section at the Monza Grand Prix, but the McLaren remains competitive - team boss Andrea Stella said he believed Lando Norris had the speed to compete for the victory in Austin had he not ended up behind Charles Leclerc.

"We just have to continue optimising the performance and continue delivering good weekends. And from this point of view, if you consider a race like Baku City Circuit, we failed to optimize the performance and we didn't execute a perfect performance."

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

Team Changes: How Challenging Is It to Switch Teams?

First of all, it's uncertain the question has an entirely correct premise. It's true that each of Lewis Hamilton and Sainz had slightly sticky first halves of the season, in varying manners, and that they are currently performing much better.

Sainz and Albon do now look quite balanced. However, it's less certain that, in Hamilton's case, he is currently the "match" of Leclerc - or not consistently, at least.

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

He is currently much closer than he was. He is consistently setting times within a small fraction of a second of his teammate, but in qualifying it's four-two to Leclerc since the summer break.

This last weekend in Austin, on one of Hamilton's preferred tracks, he was a full second behind Leclerc when the Monaco driver completed his pit stop, and lost 13 seconds over the remaining portion of the Grand Prix.

In hindsight, Leclerc was on the optimal strategy. Regardless, over the season, and even now, it's hard to argue that on balance Charles Leclerc has hasn't been the superior Ferrari racer this season.

Both Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz have discussed how difficult it is to change constructors, and we have to take them at their word.

Lewis Hamilton would not claim even currently that he was fully adapted to the Ferrari car - and he is expecting the new rules next season will benefit his driving style; he has never particularly liked these ground-effect vehicles.

There is a great deal for a driver to get their head around when they switch teams, as Lewis Hamilton has described repeatedly this season. But not every driver faces difficulties in this way.

Alonso, for example, was performing well from the start of the 2023 season when he transferred to Aston Martin. And would Verstappen struggle if he changed constructors? I believe most in Formula 1 would anticipate he wouldn't.

When Will We Know The Coming Season's Team Performance?

Until the cars run for the initial time in pre-season testing next season, nobody will know how the constructors are looking in the upcoming season.

The initial session, in Catalunya on January 26-30, is behind closed doors 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 Bahrain on 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion some kind of sense of comparative speed emerges.

But, as always, it's not until the first race that the complete and precise picture will emerge.