Can the McLaren team Continue Maintaining Fair Play and Stop Max Verstappen? - F1 Questions and Answers

Do McLaren Face the Truth of F1 - That if You Want Win, You Can't Always Play Fair?

McLaren are well aware of the challenge they face with Max Verstappen and the Red Bull team in the drivers' championship this season, but they see no reason to alter their approach to managing the team.

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

"This represents the manner we intend racing. This is the philosophy in which we tackle racing, and we want to remain fair, and we want to maintain equality to our drivers."

Team principal Andrea Stella is a veteran of numerous title battles. He won the championship as race engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari racer recovered 17 points under the previous points system in two races to secure the championship, while McLaren imploded.

And he lost the championship as race engineer to Alonso in the 2010 season, when Ferrari made errors in their race strategy at the final race of the season and allowed Sebastian Vettel and the Red Bull team to snatch the title from their grasp.

Stella commented following the race in Austin: "We look at the remaining five Grands Prix as opportunities to increase the gap on Verstappen. And when it comes to having to make a decision as to a driver, this will only be determined by the numbers."

"We lean on the experience. I can remember at least the 2007 season, 2010, in which you go to the last race and it's actually the third-placed driver that wins the championship. So we're not going to close the door unless this is determined by the calculations."

What Prompted McLaren to Stop Upgrades on The Current Car?

Every team this year have had to confront the dilemma of for how long to concentrate on their 2025 car while also making sure they are as ready as they can be for the significant rules overhaul scheduled for 2026.

In F1, 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 succeed, that benefit can last for a while - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the regulations were modified.

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

They did continue to improve it for a period, but were finding reduced benefits. So when looking at the bang for buck they were achieving on their 2025 season car compared to 2026, it became an easy decision to switch focus to the following season.

The Red Bull team have closed the gap since introducing their updated floor and nose section at the Monza Grand Prix, but the McLaren car remains competitive - team principal Stella stated he thought Norris had the pace to challenge for the victory in Austin had he not ended up behind Charles Leclerc.

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

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

Team Changes: How Difficult Is It to Switch Teams?

Initially, I'm not sure the question has an entirely accurate premise. It's true that both Hamilton and Carlos Sainz had slightly sticky first halves of the season, in varying manners, and that they are now faring significantly improved.

Sainz and Alex Albon do now appear quite balanced. However, it's less certain that, in Lewis Hamilton's case, he is currently the "equal" of Charles Leclerc - or not regularly, at least.

Hamilton has failed to outperform Leclerc frequently at all this year, either in qualifying or race.

He is now significantly nearer than he was. He is regularly setting times 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 previous weekend in Austin, on one of Hamilton's preferred tracks, he was a full second slower than his teammate when the Monegasque completed his pit stop, and dropped 13 seconds over the remaining portion of the race.

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

Each of Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz have talked about how difficult it is to change constructors, and we have to accept their statements.

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

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

Fernando Alonso, for instance, was on it from the start of the 2023 when he transferred to Aston Martin. And would Verstappen struggle if he switched teams? I suspect most in Formula 1 would anticipate he wouldn't.

When Will We Know Next Year's Team Performance?

Before the F1 cars are driven for the first time in pre-season testing next year, no-one will understand how the teams are looking next year.

The first test, in Catalunya 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 prying eyes of the media.

So the two tests in Sakhir on February 11-13 and 18-20 February will be the initial occasion some kind of sense of comparative speed becomes apparent.

But, as ever, it's not until the season opener that the complete and precise situation will emerge.