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Must McLaren Face the Truth of F1 - That to Win, You Can't Always Play Fair?

The McLaren team are fully conscious 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 continue to provide their two drivers the optimal opportunity they can and run the team on a basis of fairness and equanimity.

"This is the way we plan racing. This is the method in which we tackle racing, and we aim to remain fair, and we intend to maintain equal treatment to our drivers."

Team boss Andrea Stella is a veteran of many title battles. He won the championship as engineer to Raikkonen in 2007 when the Ferrari racer made up seventeen points under the old scoring system in two Grands Prix to win the title, while the McLaren team imploded.

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

Andrea Stella said following the Grand Prix in Texas: "We view the next five races as chances to increase the lead on Verstappen. And when it involves having to make a decision as to a team driver, this will exclusively be determined by the numbers."

"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 in fact the third-placed driver that wins the title. So we're not going to make decisions unless this is determined by mathematics."

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

Every team this year have had to face the conundrum of how long to focus on their 2025 season car while also making sure 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 gets it wrong 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 last for a while - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the rules changed.

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

They continued to develop it for a period, but were experiencing diminishing returns. So when looking at the value for money they were achieving on their 2025 season car compared to 2026, it became an straightforward decision to redirect attention to the following season.

The Red Bull team have caught up since introducing their new underfloor and front wing at the Monza Grand Prix, but the McLaren car stays competitive - team boss Stella said he believed Norris had the pace to compete for the victory in Austin had he not ended up behind Charles Leclerc.

"We must continue maximising the performance and continue delivering strong race weekends. And from this perspective, if you consider a Grand Prix like Baku City Circuit, we failed to optimize the car's potential and we didn't deliver a flawless performance."

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

Team Changes: How Challenging Is It to Change Constructors?

Initially, it's uncertain the question has an entirely correct basis. It's correct that both Lewis Hamilton and Sainz had somewhat sticky opening phases of the season, in varying manners, and that they are now faring significantly improved.

Carlos Sainz and Albon do now appear quite balanced. However, it's not so clear that, in Lewis Hamilton's case, he is yet the "equal" of Charles Leclerc - or not consistently, anyway.

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

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

This previous weekend in Austin, on one of Hamilton's favourite tracks, he was a second slower than Leclerc when the Monaco driver made his pit stop, and dropped 13 seconds over the rest of the race.

In hindsight, Charles Leclerc was on the best strategy. Nevertheless, over the season, and even now, it's difficult to claim that on balance Charles Leclerc has not been the better Ferrari driver this year.

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

Lewis Hamilton would not claim even now that he was completely adjusted to Ferrari - and he is expecting the new rules next season will benefit his driving style; he has never particularly liked these venturi cars.

There is a lot for a driver to understand and adapt to when they change constructors, as Lewis Hamilton has explained many times this year. But not all struggle in this manner.

Alonso, for instance, was on it from the beginning of the 2023 season when he moved to the Aston Martin team. And would Max Verstappen struggle if he switched teams? I believe most in F1 would anticipate he wouldn't.

When Will We Know The Coming Season's Competitive Order?

Before the cars run for the initial time in pre-season testing next year, no-one will understand how the teams are performing in the upcoming season.

The first test, in Barcelona on January 26-30, is behind closed doors because the constructors wanted to get their heads around their initial track time of the power unit changes without the scrutiny of the press.

So the two tests in Bahrain on February 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion some kind of indication of comparative speed emerges.

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