Andrea Stella’s team did not collect as much as expected ahead of the Texan weekend. A third and fourth place for Lando Norris and only a fifth place for Oscar Piastri at the end of the Sunday GP. The MCL38 was expected to perform well on the COTA corners, but the weekend’s outcome was a total Ferrari dominance. To counter Ferrari’s comeback and secure both titles, McLaren is ready with more updates for the MCL38 starting in Mexico.
The title hopes for Lando Norris are fading more and more, especially due to Verstappen’s consistent performance. During the 56 laps of the Texas GP, the Dutchman’s defense was textbook, leaving little room for the English driver to maneuver.
Despite the effective pairing at McLaren, Andrea Stella wants to continue developing the MCL38. At the end of the United States GP, the Woking team principal confirmed the arrival of additional parts for the papaya-colored car. The goal is to further strengthen the car and more easily secure the constructors’ and drivers’ titles.
“I think the next circuit should suit our car’s characteristics a little better,” Andrea Stella said to the media at the end of the United States GP in Austin. “We also need to continue developing the car. As in this case, we made some changes to the front of the car, but they weren’t too significant in terms of lap time impact. We still have a few things to do in the next two races. We’ll see if we can improve the car’s competitiveness.”
The controversial floor, McLaren still fears bouncing
The McLaren MCL38 has been on track for several races with the same floor specification introduced in Miami. This component has caused issues for several teams, including Red Bull and Ferrari, who struggled before finding the right balance. Only the latest evolutions restored balance to the RB20 and SF-24. Ahead of the GP, McLaren revealed they did not want to compromise the function of other parts with the introduction of the new floor.
However, with the team struggling compared to Ferrari and Red Bull, Stella has called for more aggressiveness in introducing new parts. “If we had been able to release and produce them in time for Austin, we would have brought them to Austin,” Andrea Stella responded. “I believe that the moment when the new parts and updates arrive on track is the natural time when they are designed, finalized, and then produced. I have already said before, though, that we wanted to ensure that what we bring to the track is well tolerated. And we are quite encouraged, and I must again congratulate our aerodynamics team, by the fact that the parts we brought here worked as expected.”
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