Stella Advises Caution as McLaren F1 Sees Season Upsurge

McLaren F1’s Andrea Stella urges restraint despite the team’s recent string of successful races.

With a win and three second places in the last four Grand Prix, McLaren F1 is showing formidable form and is now considered among the top three this season.

Does this mean aiming to win every race for the rest of the year? According to Andrea Stella, the team director from Woking, the focus remains on staying at the forefront.

“We believe we can challenge for podiums. Looking at the current competitive landscape, several teams are in a tight group in terms of lap time, separated by just a few tenths of a second. The circuit can make a difference. The drivers can make a difference. We saw that Leclerc was in phenomenal form in Monaco. Hence, there are many variables. It’s important to be as prepared as possible and to maximise our package. Then, we’ll see what results come our way.”

Charles Leclerc believes Ferrari can still beat Red Bull in both championships in 2024. Does Stella share this belief for McLaren?

“Firstly, I agree with Charles that Ferrari can claim the world championship in both categories. As for McLaren, we are looking at the standings, we see that we are in a strong position, we are building momentum. That said, what must we do to perform well in the upcoming races, to execute our plans? Thus, we are not really focused on the results. We are more focused on the process and maintaining our performance-driven approach, and on project execution. I believe in Formula 1, if you focus too much on results, you can easily get carried away.”

Piastri “Accelerating His Development,” Norris “A Model for the Entire Team”

Lando Norris has been outstanding from the start of the season, but Oscar Piastri is quickly making his mark, as evidenced by his impressive second place in Monaco. Stella also notes the progress of his Australian driver.

“Yes, I think that is the case. Especially after China, we reviewed what we had learned in the first part of the season with Oscar’s engineers, and we identified some opportunities that we began to work on. And I must say, these seem to be accelerating Oscar’s development. There’s always underlying development, but in this case, both in terms of sheer speed, which you can see in qualifying, and in terms of race performance, I think we have seen Oscar race at a very high level and, as I said, a speeding up of his development.”

“Particularly in China, it was a race where tyre degradation and its management were crucial. I think we thoroughly reviewed the race’s objectives in terms of tyre management, how we executed, how we interacted with the driver during the race, what should have been the engineers’ contribution, and the awareness the drivers needed to have. These are the kinds of details we examine. And in all these aspects, we found ways to perform better. So, these are the kinds of discussions we have with a driver to try and make progress, not just with the driver but also with technical support.”

Furthermore, Piastri is currently in his second season in Formula 1, which allows him to already know all the circuits unlike last year.

“Returning to the same track is certainly significant. There’s a sense of familiarity. There are historical data. There are many things that are reviewed after the first year. But in addition to this, there’s also the fact that there are more races in Formula 1, more races to work with your engineers, more races to understand what you need to work on. So, I think it’s not just about returning to the same circuit for the second time, it’s also about the entire development journey, which, I must say, is quite impressive with Oscar.”

As for Norris, now a Grand Prix winner, Stella has not noted any change in his approach.

“No, I would say that I haven’t noticed his commitment has changed dramatically. In fact, I would say it’s rather the opposite. Like last year, during some qualifying sessions, we pushed a bit too hard when it wasn’t necessarily required. I think of Mexico, for example, in Q1, where we lost a lap when we could have simply made it through Q1 by running on a new set of soft tyres. So, I don’t necessarily see that kind of difference. I see Lando very focused, somehow remembering what I’ve previously said about reviewing every event, seizing all opportunities to continue developing. Lando shows a great sense of ethics and is an example for the entire team.”