McLaren team principal Andrea Stella provided a clear overview of the situation following qualifying: the McLaren MCL39 cars of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris will start the Hungarian Grand Prix behind Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari. “We are not worried,” admitted the Umbrian team boss, “tomorrow we will be able to exploit our potential. We are also preparing for tracks where we might not be dominant.”
At the end of Q2, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were firmly at the top of the timesheets, the only drivers to lap under one minute and fifteen seconds. Everything was going as expected — perfect conditions, two sets of soft tires available for each car, and a front row that looked set to be painted papaya orange. Twenty minutes later, however, McLaren engineers exchanged puzzled looks as their cars returned to the pit lane after qualifying second with Piastri and third with Norris.
“We were over half a second slower compared to Q2,” explained Andrea Stella. “There was a significant change in conditions. Weather data shows a clear shift in wind direction and intensity, along with drops in temperature and humidity. Up until Q2, we were competitive and posting strong lap times, then there was a general slowdown. Our simulations verified the condition changes, and the result was a loss of four tenths of a second. The track was definitely slower, but Ferrari and Leclerc still managed to go faster.”
Piastri lost pole position by just 26 thousandths of a second, such a slim margin that the approach of both drivers came into focus. “Lando and Oscar felt the change in conditions with the first set of tires,” Stella confirmed. “Grip was no longer the same as before, and with the second set of tires they were a bit more cautious. When you’re competing for the World Championship, your primary goal is to ensure you’re in the top positions. You can’t risk ruining all the work by taking unnecessary risks. Probably for Charles it’s different — I believe he tried knowing he had little to lose. And that approach paid off today.”
The factor that most affected the performance drop of the two MCL39s was the wind. “Our analysis showed this,” Stella confirmed. “Four tenths lost due to the wind, the last tenth probably due to the drivers’ slightly more conservative approach. Regarding track temperature, it might have played a role in reducing grip, but I don’t think it was the main reason. The change from a 1:14.9 lap in Q2 to 1:15.4 in Q3 was mainly due to the wind.”
After qualifying, neither Piastri nor Norris appeared particularly disappointed. It is already clear that for the two McLaren drivers, the absolute result is secondary compared to their internal team battle, and that will continue throughout the championship. But there is another important aspect. The papaya tandem does not see Leclerc as a very problematic rival for tomorrow’s race. Starting behind him is not ideal, but everything is there to reclaim the position. In the paddock, the consensus is that after the start and braking into turn one, Piastri and Norris will mark each other closely, and then from the second lap onwards they may (potentially) focus on the ‘problem’ Leclerc.
Stella did not appear worried about the environmental conditions that could affect tomorrow’s race start, even if they remain the same as today’s qualifying. “What surprised us in Q3 wasn’t just the change in wind direction but also not knowing exactly what grip we would have in each corner. As I said before, I believe both drivers approached the situation with caution. In the race, it’s different — once you understand the situation, you can start pushing harder. The drivers know where to take risks and where to be more careful. I’m quite optimistic about our ability to show the car’s maximum potential pace. Ferrari is in the mix, but at the same time we’re confident we have everything needed to fight for the win.”
“I think here at the Hungaroring, despite the Q3 result, we actually showed that the car is fast. I believe in every session we were in P1 or P2 with a decent gap to the opposing team. This makes us very positive for the rest of the season. We’re looking forward to racing again after the summer break. I think there are some tracks that will again suit us well, like Zandvoort. We have also done specific work for tracks like Monza and Las Vegas, where we weren’t dominant last year and knew we needed to improve low-drag performance. So we can’t wait for the second part of the season and expect to remain competitive.”
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