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Do McLaren Accept Reality of F1 - That if You Want Win, You Can't Always Be Fair?

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

They will persist to provide both drivers the best chance they can and operate the team on a basis of equity and balance.

"This is the way we plan competing. This is the method in which we tackle racing, and we aim to stay equitable, and we intend to maintain equality to both drivers."

Team boss Stella is a veteran of numerous title battles. He claimed the title as engineer to Kimi Raikkonen in the 2007 season when the Ferrari racer recovered 17 points under the old scoring system in two Grands Prix to win the championship, while the McLaren team imploded.

And he lost the championship as engineer to Fernando Alonso in 2010, when the Ferrari team messed up their strategy at the final race of the season and enabled Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull to sneak the championship from their grasp.

Andrea Stella commented following the race in Austin: "We view the next five races as chances to extend the lead on Max. And when it comes to having to make a decision as to a driver, this will only be led by mathematics."

"We lean on the experience. I can recall at least the 2007 season, the 2010 season, in which you go to the final Grand Prix and it's actually the third-placed driver that claims the title. So we're not going to close the door unless this is determined by mathematics."

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

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

In F1, it's typically the case that if a team makes mistakes at the start of a new rules cycle, it can take a long time to recover. And if they succeed, that benefit can continue for some time - look at the Red Bull team in 2022 and 2023, the most recent occasion the rules were modified.

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

They did continue to improve it for a while, but were finding diminishing returns. So when evaluating the bang for buck they were getting on their 2025 car versus the 2026 car, it became an easy choice to redirect attention to next year.

The Red Bull team have closed the gap since introducing their updated floor and nose section at the Italian Grand Prix, but the McLaren car stays competitive - team boss Andrea Stella stated he believed Lando Norris had the speed to compete for the victory in Texas had he not finished following Charles Leclerc.

"We must continue maximising the performance and keep executing strong weekends. And from this point of view, if you think of a race like Baku City Circuit, we didn't maximise the car's potential and we didn't execute a flawless race."

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

Team Changes: How Difficult Is It to Switch Teams?

First of all, I'm not sure the inquiry has an entirely accurate basis. It's correct that both Lewis Hamilton and Sainz had somewhat sticky opening phases of the championship, in varying manners, and that they are now faring much better.

Sainz and Alex Albon currently appear very even. However, it's less certain that, in Lewis Hamilton's case, he is yet the "equal" of Charles Leclerc - or not consistently, anyway.

Hamilton has not beaten Leclerc very often at all this season, either in qualifying sessions or race.

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

This previous weekend in Austin, on one of Hamilton's preferred tracks, he was a full second behind his teammate when the Monaco driver completed his pit stop, and dropped 13 seconds over the rest of the race.

In hindsight, Leclerc was on the optimal strategy. Nevertheless, over the championship, and even currently, it's difficult to claim that on balance Charles 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.

Hamilton would not claim even currently that he was fully adapted to Ferrari - and he is hoping the regulation changes next year will benefit his driving style; he has never really enjoyed these venturi cars.

There is a great deal for a driver to get their head around when they switch teams, as Hamilton has explained many times this season. But not every driver struggle in this manner.

Fernando Alonso, for instance, was performing well from the start of the 2023 season when he transferred to the Aston Martin team. And would Max Verstappen face challenges if he changed constructors? I suspect the majority in Formula 1 would expect not.

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

Before the cars are driven for the first time in winter testing next season, nobody will understand how the constructors are looking in the upcoming season.

The initial session, in Catalunya on 26-30 January, is private because the teams preferred to understand their initial track time of the power unit changes without the scrutiny of the press.

So the pair of sessions in Sakhir on 11-13 and February 18-20 will be the initial occasion some kind of indication of relative performance emerges.

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