Max Verstappen could be facing a rough final 10 races this season (Image: Getty)
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has dished out an alarming warning for Red Bull and Max Verstappen, suggesting that his team are ready to ‘cash in’ on their development from the first half of the season with a raft of new parts for the MCL38.
Verstappen heads into his home Dutch Grand Prix without a win in four races – a nearly unthinkable fact just a handful of months ago. McLaren are the team with momentum in the title battle, and while the reigning champion’s lead is a healthy 78 points for now, that could easily be reduced.
Red Bull’s performance relative to Mercedes and McLaren in Spa was reason for alarm in the Verstappen camp, and Red Bull’s lead in the Constructors’ Championship has now been trimmed to just 42 points. Stella’s team are not giving up on either title.
Assessing the state of play in the development battle, Stella said: “In terms of the ATR (aerodynamic testing regulations), I’m not sure. Effectively Red Bull have taken trackside more developments so far, in terms of physical parts delivered when you look at the submission, than what we have done.
“But definitely, I can talk for McLaren, we seem to now be in condition to cash in some of this development that we have accrued, and I would expect that for the second part of the season, we will have at multiple times some new parts.”
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Lando Norris is waiting to pounce as Max Verstappen looks over his shoulder (Image: Getty)
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The Italian team principal added: “In a way I’m surprised that we’ve been so competitive, considering that from Miami onwards we haven’t actually brought trackside many new parts. So it means that obviously, the Miami upgrade was big, but there’s some upgrades that will come in the second part of the season.”
Should McLaren continue to extend their advantage over Red Bull and Lando Norris close in on Verstappen at the top of the Drivers’ Championship standings, Zak Brown and Stella will have to face some difficult decisions when it comes to team orders and prioritising the Brit’s title fight.
Addressing those concerns, Brown told Motorsport.com: “Obviously, if you get later into the championship and one driver has more of a shot than another, then you might start looking at things that you do strategically differently.
“But we treat them equally. They know that, they enjoy that, and they respect our decisions when we sometimes need to make some concessions. They’re very respectful of that. So I think we’re fortunate and lucky to have the two individuals that we have.”
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