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

The McLaren team are fully conscious of the challenge they encounter with Max Verstappen and Red Bull in the championship battle this season, but they don't believe to change their method to managing the team.

They will continue to provide their two drivers the best chance they can and operate the team on a basis of fairness and equanimity.

"This represents the manner we plan racing. This is the way in which we tackle racing, and we want to remain equitable, and we want to maintain equality to both drivers."

Team boss Stella is a seasoned expert of many championship fights. He won the title as race engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari racer made up seventeen points under the previous points system in two Grands Prix to win the title, while McLaren collapsed.

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

Stella stated after the race in Texas: "We view the remaining five Grands Prix as opportunities to extend the lead on Verstappen. And when it involves having to make a call as to a team driver, this will only be determined by mathematics."

"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 wins the championship. So we're not going to make decisions unless this is determined by mathematics."

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

All teams this season have had to confront the conundrum of for how long to focus on their 2025 car while also ensuring they are as ready as they can be for the major regulation change scheduled for the 2026 season.

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

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

They did continue to improve it for a while, but were experiencing reduced benefits. So when evaluating the bang for buck they were getting on their 2025 season car compared to the 2026 car, it became an straightforward decision to switch focus to next year.

Red Bull have caught up since bringing their new underfloor and front wing at the Monza Grand Prix, but the McLaren car stays competitive - team boss Andrea Stella said he believed Lando Norris had the speed to challenge for the win in Texas had he not ended up behind Leclerc.

"We just have to keep maximising the performance and continue executing good race weekends. And from this perspective, if you think of a race like Baku City Circuit, we didn't maximise the car's potential and we didn't deliver a perfect race."

"So definitely we have a significant chance, and the outcome of this championship and the driver's title is in our hands. It's not in someone else's hands."

Driver Transfers: How Difficult Is It to Switch Teams?

Initially, it's uncertain the inquiry has an entirely correct basis. It's true that both Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had slightly difficult opening phases of the championship, in different ways, and that they are now performing much better.

Sainz and Alex Albon do now look quite balanced. However, it's not so clear that, in Hamilton's case, he is yet the "equal" of Leclerc - or not consistently, at least.

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

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

This previous weekend in Austin, on one of Lewis Hamilton's preferred tracks, he was a full second behind his teammate when the Monaco driver made his pit stop, and lost thirteen seconds over the rest of the race.

Looking back, Charles Leclerc was on the best strategy. Regardless, over the championship, and even currently, it's hard to argue that on average Charles Leclerc has not been the superior Ferrari racer this season.

Each of Lewis Hamilton and Sainz have discussed how challenging it is to switch teams, and we have to accept their statements.

Lewis Hamilton would not say even currently that he was completely adjusted to Ferrari - and he is hoping the regulation changes next season will suit him; he has never really enjoyed these ground-effect vehicles.

There is a great deal for a racing driver to understand and adapt to when they switch teams, as Hamilton has described repeatedly this year. But not all faces difficulties in this way.

Fernando Alonso, for instance, was performing well from the start of the 2023 when he moved to the Aston Martin team. And would Verstappen face challenges if he switched teams? I believe most in F1 would expect not.

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

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

The first test, in Catalunya on January 26-30, is private because the constructors preferred to understand their initial track time of the power unit changes without the scrutiny of the media.

So the two tests in Bahrain on February 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the first time some kind of indication of relative performance becomes apparent.

But, as always, it's not until the first race that the true and accurate picture will become clear.