Andrea Stella has opened up on the key to McLaren’s remarkable turnaround in Formula 1 this season. The Italian team boss highlighted the high success rate of the team’s upgrade packages, which has been the cornerstone of Lando Norris’ back-to-back victories in Hungary and Zandvoort.
Those wins were no fluke. Norris dominated at both circuits, displaying a level of performance that left rivals struggling to keep up. However, McLaren’s journey has not been smooth. The team admitted that their early-season lack of pace was partly due to a development hangover from last year, when Norris and Oscar Piastri were locked in a tense title fight with Max Verstappen.
Unlike Red Bull, which has lost its way, McLaren has adapted quickly and turned its car into a race-winning package. Stella revealed that nearly every upgrade brought to the track has worked as expected. The only exception was the front wing, which required minor tweaks when introduced around the Canadian Grand Prix.
“Our upgrade success rate has been relatively high, continuing the trend from previous seasons. However, I’ve always said that with these regulations, this seems to be a general trend for everyone. It’s slightly easier to find confirmation of development expectations,” Stella explained in an exclusive interview with Crash.net.
Another key factor is the budget cap and aerodynamic testing restrictions. Teams can no longer throw unlimited resources at problems like in the old days, which increases the importance of getting developments right the first time. Stella noted that aerodynamic development has been slightly easier this year compared to last, when the regulations were mature and finding significant gains was tough.
Interestingly, Stella dismissed Mercedes boss Toto Wolff’s claim that his team is short on budget and cannot compete on upgrades. Stella believes that’s just an excuse, especially since all teams will receive a cost cap allowance related to the 2027 power unit regulations. “Every team will get around three million dollars extra in the 2026 cost cap calculation,” he asserted.
With their impressive form, McLaren is now a strong favorite for the rest of the season. The question remains: can they maintain this consistency to the end, or will other teams spring a surprise?
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