Stella confident of fending off Verstappen
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella is upbeat about his drivers, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, fending off Max Verstappen over the remaining five weekends. Over the last four races, Red Bull’s upgrades have allowed the Dutchman to finish ahead of them.
Meanwhile, championship leader Piastri particularly struggling to keep his title momentum on the rails after tough weekends in Baku and Austin. Red Bull now having gained the upper hand on a variety of circuits, Verstappen has boosted his chances of overhauling a 40-point deficit to Piastri and taking a fifth consecutive world title.
But Stella doesn’t want McLaren to take a defensive stance and wants the papaya squad to attack the next few races on the front foot, and is upbeat that McLaren can be on par with Red Bull. McLaren is still the big favourite for the penultimate race in Qatar, although it would not be hard to imagine Verstappen being ahead in Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi.
He told Motorsport.com, “The fact that there are five races and two sprints means that we can also increase the gap to Max. That’s how I see things. I think we have good tracks coming for our car.”
Part of the reason that Stella has confidence is the team’s belief that the team hasn’t made the most of their potential. Last weekend, there collision at the start of the sprint left them without crucial information like plank wear, forcing forced to choose a higher, more conservative ride height in the grand prix.
Neither drivers delivered a great weekend in Baku, with Piastri even crashing out both in qualifying and the race, while the Australian also struggled for pace in Austin.
Stella added, “We have more that we could have exploited out of our car. And to some extent, the drivers recognise themselves that they could have done a better job in some of the previous races. So, I think we look at the next five races as opportunities to increase the gap on Max.”
Verstappen making the difference as he fights back
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko says a “different approach” to engineering their car lies behind the surge in form that his catapulted Max Verstappen back into the title contention.
The team’s season, which featured the sacking of long-serving and hugely successful CEO and team principal Christian Horner in July to be replaced by Laurent Mekies, had threatened to be heading for an underwhelming finish amid McLaren’s domination of the Constructors’ Championship and Verstappen’s apparent fall out of drivers’ title contention by mid-season.
However, Verstappen is now firmly back in the hunt for a fifth consecutive crown against the McLaren drivers after winning three of the last four races and finishing in the top two of all five events since the August summer break. Over the last four races, Verstappen has closed a hundred and four-point gap to forty with five weekends.
Marko told Sky Sports, “It’s a different approach from the engineering side, they’re working very well together. They ask the driver what they want.”
Asked more broadly about Verstappen’s role in developing and setting up the car, Marko said, “Very good technical understanding, but it’s more that he tells how he would like to have the car. He has confidence.”
“Before, at some of the races, it was a very small margin where the car was working, and he didn’t have the confidence. And now, the car is to his liking, and that keeps his confidence, and of course, he delivers with fantastic lap times.”
Before Monza, the four-time champion had gone eight races and almost four months without a Grand Prix victory. Heading into the summer break, Verstappen had not finished on the podium for four consecutive races for the first time since 2018, with Red Bull struggling for consistent form with their RB21 car.
Marko suggests that before Monza, Verstappen’s interest in the season was because of Red Bull’s struggles this season, but that driving, and ultimately winning, in endurance racing at the Nordschleife in September had a role to play in what has followed.
He added, “Max at one stage, when we were not competitive, I would say he lost a little bit of interest. He was more interested in GT racing, so to keep him in a good mood, I was talking about Nurburgring and things like that.”
“But now that the car is working, and his success at the Nurburgring, I would say two tenths just came from him because he’s really motivated, he’s enjoying, you don’t hear him shouting, he’s smiling – that’s what you need.”
Verstappen is “extraordinary out of the car” – Mekies
Red Bull CEO and team principal Laurent Mekies has explained why Max Verstappen is just “as extraordinary out of the car” as in it, after getting to work with the four-time world champion over the past three months.
Mekies moved to Red Bull from its sister team Racing Bulls, replacing Christian Horner, working with Verstappen for the first time after admiring the Dutchman from a distance over his stints with Ferrari, the FIA and Racing Bulls. The most striking about Verstappen is not just the world-beating performances aboard the Red Bull RB21, but the Dutchman’s intense work ethic and commitment behind the scenes.
Speaking on the Securing the Win podcast, he said, “Everybody knows what he does in the car and how extraordinary that is, and how close he is able to be to the limit, lap after lap, race after race, year after year. We know he sets a benchmark there.”
“I think the biggest surprise has been to discover him outside of the car, and he is as extraordinary, if not more extraordinary, out of the car that is in the car. The level of commitment, his deep understanding of the complexity of the team trying to give him the fastest possible car and how to drive that team towards the right solution for the car is incredible.”
Mekies says when you call Verstappen, you can see how intense he is. However, since the summer break, the resurgence is down to the Frenchman’s work on improving communications within the engineering squad and making it challenge its own beliefs.
But he also pointed to the way Verstappen communicates with the team, as he drives the development of Red Bull’s cars.
Talking Points Mexico City
Round twenty brings the sport to the highest race in terms of altitude in Mexico City, a week on from Max Verstappen’s win in both the sprint and Grand Prix in Austin. There has been talk this week about whether the Dutchman has entered the championship fight or if it remains a McLaren fight.
McLaren had dominated the 2025 campaign so much that it seemed the drivers’ title battle was only between Piastri and Norris who, between them, won twelve of the opening fifteen Grands Prix. Talks had even been held internally about how to celebrate.
But their chance of a double championship is no longer a full gone conclusion, Red Bull’s upgrades have brought Verstappen into play with him forty points behind Piastri and twenty-six behind Norris. There is no doubt about what the current champion can do.
The high altitude of Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is defined by its thin air, which negates the effect of bigger wings and is a reason Red Bull typically thrives in Mexico. Its car also enjoys stable downforce at the higher ride heights that are required to protect the planks from Mexico’s bumpy track, and fast corners aren’t where McLaren is at its best.
There remains speculation about who will partner Verstappen next year. Liam Lawson started the season in that role, having replaced the struggling Sergio Perez, but he only lasted two rounds after not scoring a point.
Tsunoda was given the promotion from sister outfit Racing Bulls for round three, Japan, onwards but has faced similar struggles. The Japanese driver scored just twenty-five points for Red Bull, leaving him sixteenth in the championship and not yet signed for next year.
It is expected that Isack Hadjar is to be promoted to replace Tsunoda, with junior Arvid Lindblad is expected to join Racing Bulls after his season in F2. Red Bull management had previously stated that it aims to announce its driver line-ups across both teams by the end of October, meaning it could be confirmed this weekend.
The only real question is who will be Lindblad’s teammate? It is likely to be either Lawson or Tsunoda, with the former being the favourite given he is a couple of years younger than the Red Bull driver and what good would a demotion to Racing Bulls serve for Tsunoda?
Ferrari has had one of the most underwhelming seasons after going backwards from where it ended last season. The Scuderia is third in the championship, three hundred and forty-four points behind McLaren and yet to even win a grand prix. Austin, however, marked a vast improvement for the team as Charles Leclerc finished third with Lewis Hamilton in fourth, its highest points tally since Austria in June.
Nine rookies to take part in FP1
Nine rookies will take part in FP1 on Friday in Mexico City, the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is now a well-known circuit where teams have gathered lots of data and where the track is usually quite dusty in FP1. It is not a sprint weekend, and upgrades are becoming scarcer and scarcer, meaning it is an ideal place for a regular driver to sit the opening session out.
Pato O’Ward will replace Lando Norris for the second time at his home race, having also done FP1 in Abu Dhabi in 2022 and 2023. He finished as runner-up for McLaren in IndyCar. Now-former McLaren junior Alex Dunne previously ran in Austria and Italy this year, so Oscar Piastri still will have to sit another session out – with Abu Dhabi clearly the best remaining option.
Last year’s Le Mans winner, Antonio Fuoco, will make his FP1 debut with Ferrari, replacing Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time champion will be required to miss another session, most likely in Abu Dhabi.
Arvid Lindblad is getting more track time as he prepares for a likely graduation to F1 with Racing Bulls in 2026; Lindblad holds seventh place in his rookie F2 season and was previously seen in action with Red Bull at home, at Silverstone. Another Red Bull junior, Ayumu Iwasa, took part in FP1 in Bahrain, and Tsunoda will need to vacate his car once more later on.
Fred Vesti will replace George Russell. This will be the Dane’s fourth FP1 outing after Mexico and Abu Dhabi last year, and Bahrain this season. This will complete the set for Mercedes, as Kimi Antonelli was considered a rookie in Melbourne and Shanghai.
Current F2 title contender Jak Crawford is set for his first-ever grand prix outing, having already tested Aston Martin’s previous three F1 cars on various occasions. Reserve driver Felipe Drugovich previously replaced Fernando Alonso in Bahrain and Hungary, meaning Lance Stroll will have to sit out another session by the end of the year.
Paul Aron will be taking part in his fourth FP1 session of the season, as there continue to be rumours about him being in contention for the second seat for 2026. Ryo Hirakawa was in action for Alpine at his home Suzuka track, but the team previously opted not to declare Jack Doohan’s Melbourne entry as a rookie outing, officially “to keep it equitable with two driver changes for both cars”.
Regardless, this will be the first time Pierre Gasly has vacated his car this year, so he’ll need to do so again later on, with Aron expected to step up once again
Rio Hirakawa will replace Ollie Bearman, after Bearman lost his rookie status I Sao Paulo last season when he made his third Grand Prix start. Esteban Ocon will still be required to sit out another session.
Ayumu Iwasa will replace Liam Lawson, fulfilling Racing Bulls’ requirement. Iwasa previously drove for the Faenza-based squad in FP1 last year, in Japan and Abu Dhabi.
Williams has so far given its mandatory FP1 rookie outings to its juniors, with Luke Browning getting a second outing after Bahrain, while new protege Victor Martins was in action at Barcelona. Alexander Albon will still need to give another FP1 session a miss.
Colapinto says team orders “must always be followed”
Franco Colapinto has said, “instructions by the team must always be followed no matter what”, after disobeying a team order in the United States Grand Prix. Last weekend, despite stopping first on lap thirteen, in the final ten laps, the Argentine came under pressure from Gabriel Bortoletto as they fought not to finish last.
However, Colapinto was stuck behind teammate Pierre Gasly, closing in at seven tenths a lap, when he was instructing him to hold positions on lap fifty-four. The Argentine replied: “Wait, what? Hold positions? But he’s slow!” Colapinto did overtake Gasly in spite of the team order and finished seventeenth ahead of Bortoleto, with the Frenchman ending up last.
Alpine has now seemingly reprimanded its driver for his on-track behaviour. Colapinto said in the teams preview, “The team situation on Sunday has been discussed internally and it is clear that instructions by the team must always be followed no matter what. We are all together, and we are all working towards the same goal to keep getting better with each session and each race weekend.”
This contradicts what he said after Austin, Colapinto said he had more pace than Gasly during the final stint with the Frenchman going slowly and he believed it was best to have him in front. He thought it was best to have him in front so they both didn’t get overtaken.
Asked whether he was surprised to get a team order for seventeenth, Colapinto had diplomatically replied: “I don’t know – I think the team, we are trying really hard to be strong for next year and we are just analysing every situation and trying to get better at those. It’s these moments that are so very important in a weekend, and even though it’s not for points we are trying to make the best call possible every time.”
The team has had one of the most difficult times in its history as it has finished the last four grands prix with both its cars outside the top fifteen positions.
