At the end of the Brazilian Grand Prix, Andrea Stella was caught on camera in an intense discussion at the McLaren pit wall, pointing at a graph on the monitor. Here’s what the team principal was analyzing.
The Brazil GP left McLaren team principal Andrea Stella only partially satisfied. While Lando Norris claimed a well-deserved victory, Oscar Piastri squandered what could have been a potential 1-2 finish, considering the competitiveness of the MCL39, due to a misjudgment in turn 1 at the Safety Car restart. This mistake caused a crash, which through Kimi Antonelli led to Charles Leclerc’s retirement, penalized Oscar Piastri by 10 seconds, and relegated him to only fifth place at the finish.
Noteworthy, however, was Max Verstappen’s comeback, finishing P3 after starting from the pit lane — a performance that, as we’ll see, became a topic of discussion at the McLaren pit wall.
The scene at the pit wall
After the race in Brazil, cameras captured Andrea Stella in a rather animated discussion with a colleague at the McLaren pit wall, gesturing and pointing decisively at a graph on the monitor. Sitting next to him was Randy Singh, as indicated by the “RS” initials visible on his headset, the sporting director and former chief strategist of the team.
The graph displayed on the monitor was specifically a “race trace,” an analytical tool that compares the race progress of multiple drivers. Unlike simple lap times, this tool shows the evolution of the gaps between drivers throughout the race, allowing a comparison of both race pace and strategic decisions.
In the footage, Andrea Stella appears to be pointing at the blue line representing Max Verstappen during his second pit stop, following it along the rest of the stint with his finger. It is therefore likely that he and Singh were analyzing the rival’s strategy or race pace, highlighting Verstappen’s exceptional comeback. The discussion may also have involved strategic decisions concerning Piastri, who finished behind Red Bull’s #1 car.
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