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

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

McLaren are fully conscious of the obstacle they encounter with Max Verstappen and the Red Bull team in the championship battle this year, but they see no reason to modify their strategy to managing the team.

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

"This is the manner we plan competing. This is the method in which we tackle racing, and we aim to remain fair, and we intend to maintain equality to both drivers."

Team boss Andrea Stella is a seasoned expert of numerous title battles. He claimed the championship as engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari driver recovered 17 points under the previous points system in two Grands Prix to secure the championship, while McLaren collapsed.

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

Andrea Stella said following the race in Austin: "We view the next five races as opportunities to increase the lead on Max. And when it comes to having to make a decision as to a driver, this will only be determined by the numbers."

"We rely on the experience. I can recall at least 2007, the 2010 season, in which you reach the last race and it's in fact the [driver in] third [place] that claims the title. So we're not going to close the door unless this is determined by mathematics."

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

All teams this year have had to confront the conundrum of how long to concentrate on their 2025 car while also making sure they are as prepared as they can be for the significant regulation change scheduled for the 2026 season.

In F1, it's typically the case that if a constructor makes mistakes at the start of a new rules cycle, it can take a considerable period to catch up. And if they get it right, that benefit can last for a while - consider the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the last time the rules were modified.

McLaren began this season 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 evaluating the value for money they were achieving on their 2025 season car versus the 2026 car, it became an straightforward decision to redirect attention to the following season.

Red Bull have caught up since introducing their new underfloor and nose section at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren car remains competitive - team principal Andrea Stella stated he thought Norris had the speed to challenge for the win in Austin had he not finished behind Charles Leclerc.

"We must continue optimising the performance and keep executing strong weekends. And from this point of view, if you consider a race like Baku, we failed to optimize the performance and we didn't deliver a perfect race."

"Therefore we have a large opportunity, and the outcome of this championship and the driver's title is in our hands. It's not placed in another team's control."

Team Changes: How Difficult Is It to Switch Teams?

First of all, it's uncertain the question has an completely accurate basis. It's correct that each of Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had somewhat difficult opening phases of the championship, in different ways, and that they are now performing much better.

Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon currently look very even. However, it's less certain that, in Hamilton's case, he is currently the "match" of Charles Leclerc - or not consistently, at least.

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

He is currently significantly nearer than he was. He is regularly qualifying within a few hundredths of a second of his teammate, but in qualifying it's 4-2 to Charles Leclerc since the summer break.

This previous weekend in Texas, on one of Hamilton's favourite tracks, he was a second behind his teammate when the Monegasque made his tire change, and dropped thirteen seconds over the rest of the race.

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

Both Lewis Hamilton and Sainz have talked about how challenging it is to change constructors, and we have to accept their statements.

Hamilton would not claim 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 particularly liked these ground-effect vehicles.

There is a great deal for a driver to understand and adapt to when they change constructors, as Lewis Hamilton has explained repeatedly this season. But not every driver faces difficulties in this way.

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

How Soon Can We Determine The Coming Season's Competitive Order?

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

The first test, 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 scrutiny of the media.

So the two tests in Bahrain on 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion a certain indication of comparative speed becomes apparent.

But, as always, it's not until the season opener that the true and accurate situation will emerge.