McLaren battle to continue in 2025? 'We want that problem!'
F1 News
During the 2024 season, (the lack of) team orders at McLaren was a much discussed topic in the world of Formula One. From the team to rivals and media, many reflected on the Woking-based team's decisions. According to Andrea Stella, that is a headache they would like to have next year if Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri ends up fighting for the drivers' title.
While Lando Norris missed out on the drivers' title, in 2024, McLaren were crowned constructors' champions. Finishing on top of the teams' standings, expectations are high work the British team to perform at the front and also fight for the title they missed out on last season.
Asked how McLaren would react to a title battle that involves both Norris and Oscar Piastri, team principal Andrea Stella said: "We do want to have that kind of problem. We work very hard to have a problem of having a car in condition to win races and two drivers in condition to win races. And we know that this one in Formula 1 always comes with some complications, but these are complications that we have already faced this season to some extent."
The Italian underlined that what matters to the team will be the priority. "I think we have always approached that in a cohesive way. Both drivers were always fully aware that we need to find solutions that, first of all, put the interest of the team [first] and then the interest of the drivers [second]. And so far, I think this has been a very positive process. It's a process that we plan to carry over onto next season."
Still, it is not the matter that concerns the team principal. "We call it problem [this time], potentially it's more of an opportunity. Our focus is to make sure that from a technical point-of-view, we give Lando and Oscar a car that is in condition to fight for the championship. Because had we done this at the start of this season, without having some underperformance in the early races of the season, then we would have been in condition to fight for the drivers’ championship for longer," he concluded in Abu Dhabi.
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