McLaren endured a Canadian Grand Prix to forget, with the reigning world champions seeing their Montréal weekend unravel in the most dramatic fashion possible. The papaya squad went from locking out the second row of the grid with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to leaving Canada without a single point, after a disastrous combination of risky strategy, driver error and mechanical failure.
Lando Norris, the reigning world champion, was forced to retire with a gearbox issue, while Oscar Piastri crossed the line in 11th after a race further compromised by a fully justified penalty following contact with Alex Albon’s Williams during an overly optimistic overtaking attempt.
But the true turning point in McLaren’s race came even before the lights went out, when the team made the bold decision to fit intermediate tyres for the start. Norris and Oscar Piastri were the only drivers among the leading teams to take that gamble, and the decision backfired spectacularly.
“We opted for the intermediate tyres five minutes before the start because the track was slippery and it was still raining,” McLaren team principal Andrea Stella explained after the Grand Prix. “Unfortunately, the rain stopped the moment we fitted the tyres, the circuit dried very quickly, and the two extra formation laps completely wiped out any advantage.”
Andrea Stella also detailed the chain of problems that followed for both cars.
“With Lando, we had an issue with the car, we had to stop to clean the radiators, and then we suffered an irreparable gearbox failure. As for Oscar, the collision with Alex Albon damaged the car and led to a penalty. Even when he had clear air, we struggled to get the tyres into the correct temperature window to achieve competitive race pace.”
Both McLaren drivers were left frustrated by how the afternoon unfolded, starting with Lando Norris, who had hoped to carry over the momentum from his strong second-place finish in Saturday’s Sprint race.
“We decided to start on intermediate tyres because it was still drizzling on the grid, and although the launch was fantastic, the rain eased off and that decision proved wrong after just one lap,” Lando Norris admitted. “That’s racing. Sometimes these calls win you races, other times they don’t. I accept my share of responsibility for that decision.”
The British driver also reflected on the mechanical setbacks that ultimately ended his race.
“We also had to deal with a couple of early pit stops and, in the end, a mechanical issue that forced us to retire. In the cold conditions, we simply couldn’t get the front tyres up to temperature, which made the car very difficult to drive. But despite everything, I think we were on course to recover some decent points.”
Oscar Piastri, meanwhile, had more than just strategy to regret. The Australian’s clash with Alex Albon added further damage to an already difficult race and effectively ended any realistic hopes of recovery.
“It wasn’t the day we were hoping for,” Oscar Piastri said. “We chose to start on the intermediate tyres because the track looked quite wet between the national anthem and getting into the car, but in the end it turned out to be the wrong choice.”
He also acknowledged responsibility for the collision.
“Then I picked up some damage in the incident with Alex Albon. I apologise to him and to the Williams team. After that, we did everything we could to recover, but conditions out there were really very difficult.”
For McLaren, the Canadian Grand Prix may prove to be more than just a bad weekend. Beyond the failed strategy call and race-day chaos, the team’s struggles to generate tyre temperature in cold conditions could become a more serious concern as the Formula 1 season heads toward circuits where similar weather could once again expose the same weakness.
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