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Do McLaren Face the Truth of F1 - That if You Want Win, It's Not Always Possible to Be Fair?

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

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

"This represents the approach we plan racing. This is the method in which we tackle racing, and we aim to remain fair, and we want to apply equal treatment to our drivers."

Team principal Stella is a seasoned expert of numerous championship fights. He claimed the championship as engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in 2007 when the Ferrari racer recovered 17 points under the old scoring system in two races to secure the championship, while the McLaren team collapsed.

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

Andrea Stella said following the Grand Prix in Texas: "We look at the remaining five Grands Prix as opportunities to extend the gap on Verstappen. And when it involves having to make a decision as to a team driver, this will only be determined by the numbers."

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

What Prompted McLaren to Stop Development on This Year's Car?

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

In Formula 1, it's usually the case that if a constructor gets it wrong at the start of a new regulation period, it can take a long time to recover. And if they succeed, that benefit can last for a while - consider the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the last time the regulations were modified.

McLaren started this year with the best car, after investing a lot of innovation into their 2025 design.

They continued to develop it for a period, but were finding reduced benefits. So when evaluating the value for money they were achieving on their 2025 car versus 2026, it became an easy choice to switch focus to next year.

The Red Bull team have closed the gap since bringing their updated underfloor and nose section at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren stays competitive - team boss Andrea Stella stated he believed Lando Norris had the speed to challenge for the win in Texas had he not ended up following Leclerc.

"We just have to keep maximising the performance and keep delivering good race weekends. And from this perspective, if you think of a race like Baku, we didn't maximise the performance and we didn't execute a flawless performance."

"Therefore we have a large chance, and the outcome of this season and the drivers' championship is in our hands. It's not placed in someone else's hands."

Driver Transfers: How Difficult Is It to Switch Teams?

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

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

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

He is now significantly nearer than he was. He is consistently qualifying within a small fraction of a second of his teammate, but in qualifying battles it's four-two to Leclerc since the summer break.

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

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

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

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

There is a lot for a racing driver to get their head around when they change constructors, as Hamilton has described repeatedly 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 the Aston Martin team. And would Max Verstappen face challenges if he switched teams? I believe the majority in Formula 1 would anticipate he wouldn't.

How Soon Can We Determine Next Year's Team Performance?

Before the cars run for the first time in winter testing next season, no-one will know how the constructors are performing in the upcoming season.

The first test, in Barcelona on January 26-30, is private because the teams wanted to get their heads around their first running of the power unit changes without the prying eyes of the media.

So the pair of sessions in Sakhir on 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion a certain indication of comparative speed emerges.

But, as ever, it's only at the first race that the complete and precise situation will become clear.