The team principal: “If at the start of the season they had told us that we would find ourselves in this situation with two Grand Prix races to go, we would have signed up for it.”

Although Verstappen’s shadow looms even larger after his double disqualification in Las Vegas, there will be no team orders at McLaren to favor Lando Norris. This was emphasized by team principal Andrea Stella, who confirmed that the British driver and Oscar Piastri will be free to fight for the title until the end of the championship: “There is no reason to change anything in the management of the drivers. We have always said that we will leave the two drivers free to fight for the title as long as the math allows it. That will be the case in Qatar. It should be remembered that if someone had told us at the beginning of the season that we would find ourselves in this situation with two Grand Prix races to go, we would have signed up for it! Now we are preparing to fight for the double World title with confidence and awareness of our capabilities.” So Norris, who could seal the World title in Lusail, will not be able to count on Piastri’s help. The latter is currently second in the standings, 24 points behind his teammate and level on points with Verstappen.

Stella also returned to the double disqualification in Las Vegas, analyzing the technical issues that caused it: “The specific cause that led to the disqualification was the unexpected onset of extensive porpoising (a vertical bounce, or hopping, of the car generated by the ground effect aerodynamics that characterizes the current generation of single-seaters, ed.), which caused severe vertical oscillations of the car. The level of porpoising was exacerbated by the conditions in which the car raced during the GP. This was not anticipated based on what we had observed in testing and the predictions for the car’s operating window in the race. Based on the data collected in free practice, we believe we did not take excessive risks in terms of ground clearance. We also added a safety margin for qualifying and the race compared to testing. However, this margin was negated by the sudden onset of severe vertical oscillations, which caused the car to touch the ground.“ The Woking-based team’s principal emphasized the soundness of the FIA’s decision, despite the violation being minimal: ”We confirmed with the technical delegate that the skid thickness measurement was correct. Although the excessive wear is minimal and present in only one spot (0.12 mm for Lando and 0.26 mm for Oscar), the regulations are very clear: the rear skids must be at least 9 mm at the end of the race at every point. Unlike sporting or financial regulations, there is no proportionality in the application of penalties for technical regulation infringements.” In any case, as Stella pointed out, the Federation emphasized McLaren’s good faith, specifying that there was no deliberate attempt to circumvent the regulations.

THE REACTION—  A double disqualification at such a crucial time of the year is a tough blow to take, but Andrea Stella said he was satisfied with what he saw at the factory after what happened in Las Vegas: “Walking around the factory this week, I was particularly impressed by how deep and solid the team’s cultural foundation is. The reaction has been entirely focused on assimilating what there is to learn, eliminating any negativity, and ensuring that we come out stronger from situations like this. I was very pleased to see how the team has become a mature group of racers, united and looking to the future. Episodes like this make us grow. They are painful, there’s no denying it, but pain is also part of our sport. At McLaren, there is no culture of blame, but one of progress and constant growth. I am sure that all of us are looking forward to Friday afternoon in Qatar, so that we can give Lando and Oscar the best car possible, allowing them to be the only drivers capable of winning the World Championship.