Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has repudiated Toto Wolff’s suggestion that Lewis Hamilton‘s struggles are linked to his driving style not suiting the current Formula 1 cars.

Hamilton has been unable to replicate the success he sustained with the previous generation cars, managing two victories since F1 reverted to ground effect in 2022.

But while that can be attributed to Mercedes enduring a downturn since the change, Hamilton’s level has also dipped when compared against his team-mate’s results.

The Briton’s woes have been most pronounced in qualifying, an area where he used to be renowned as a specialist with an unequalled 104 pole positions to his name.

Mercedes Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin addressed that during 2024, a season in which George Russell out-qualified Hamilton 19 times in 24 rounds.

“Lewis hasn’t disguised the fact that Saturdays were his tough day,” Shovlin said last summer.

“He’s struggled with this whole generation of car, really, not suiting his style. He’s been working on how he drives.

“It’s particularly [that] he struggled on the single lap. So his long run pace is always there and that’s been really useful.

“It’s more just the way that he wants to attack a corner, when you do that, then the car would snap to oversteer. You start to build tyre temperature.”

Ferrari and Mercedes disagree on Hamilton decline

Hamilton’s move to a new environment has not provided an instant upturn as he has experienced various morale-denting setbacks since making the switch to Ferrari.

The seven-time champion claimed that he is “useless” as he succumbed to a Q2 exit at the Hungarian Grand Prix, while team-mate Charles Leclerc took pole position.

However, Mercedes Team Principal Wolff has tipped Hamilton, 40, to be reinvigorated at Ferrari next season when sweeping new technical regulations are introduced.

“Lewis has unfinished business in Formula 1,” Wolff told media including Motorsport Week.

“In the same way that Mercedes underperformed over this latest set of regulations since 2022, he kind of never got happy with ground effect cars, in the same way, it beats him. Maybe it’s linked to driving style.

“So, he shouldn’t go anywhere. Next year, brand new cars, completely different to drive, new power units that need an intelligent way of managing the energy.

“So, that’s absolutely on for Lewis, and I hope he stays on for many more years, and certainly next year is going to be an important one.”

Vasseur, though, does not subscribe to the notion that Hamilton’s aggressive late-braking approach isn’t compatible with the contemporary ground effect challengers.

Asked whether this ruleset has been Hamilton’s ‘war’, Vasseur told Auto Motor und Sport: “I don’t think so.

“If we had had bouncing, maybe. But even though we are always on the verge of bouncing, we now have it under control to some extent.”

READ MORE – Ferrari admits Lewis Hamilton can ‘make things worse’ when he ‘exaggerates problems’

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Carlos Sainz has insisted Williams’ resurgence in Formula 1 in 2025 has cemented the conviction that he made the right decision to choose the team 12 months ago.

Sainz’s arrival at Williams has coincided with an upturn that has culminated in the team picking up more points than it had over the previous three seasons combined.

However, Sainz has seldom had a chance to capitalise on Williams’ improvement with the FW47 as various issues outside his control have restricted him to 16 points.

Alex Albon has had a more seamless experience this season, though, with his 54-point total enough to have Williams residing fifth in the Constructors’ Championship.

Sainz, who was in high demand when it was revealed Lewis Hamilton would replace him at Ferrari, reckons that turnaround has vindicated his choice to pick Williams.

But outside the team’s competitiveness in the short-term exceeding his expectations, Sainz has also been encouraged by the progress being made behind the scenes.

“I definitely felt last year, when I took the decision, Williams was ninth in the championship and there was less certainty that maybe Williams was the right choice in my career,” Sainz recalled to media including Motorsport Week.

“Now I think a year on I’m very confident of the decision I took. I’m very glad looking at the progress the team is showing and the momentum we’re building into 26.

“Looking at everything that’s been done in the team in ’26, ’27, ’28 which is why I came to this team.

“I didn’t come to this team for the results of ’25. I came for the potential of ’26, ’27, ’28.

“I think the more I see what’s being done and the more I am with the team the better it looks.

“At the same time there’s a lot of things to work on and to improve as a team. There’s a very long list of things that we’re trying to get through and work on.

“I’m happy with that decision and I think we just need to keep our head down and at some point the results of ’25 will give momentum going into ’26.”

Sainz clear on Williams target for 2025

Williams still holds an 18-point cushion over the chasing pack, despite the team’s pace advantage diminishing as the competition has continued to improve their cars.

Sainz is striving to have a smoother end to the campaign to help the Grove-based squad go into the impending rules change as the closest rival to the leading quartet.

“For me, it would be, I think, as a team, a successful year to score fifth in the Championship and show massive progress,” the Spaniard added.

“Again, it would show a positive direction of the team, the gathering momentum into ’26 with all the big changes that are happening and everything that we are investing into ’26.

“For me, it’s important that even if I’m taking my time to adapt to the team and the car… I don’t think I took my time to adapt to the car, I think I was quite quick straight away.

“It’s just getting results and putting things together that has been a struggle since the beginning of the year.

“Still in Race 12, it doesn’t seem like we’re getting any better at putting things together, but it will come at some point.

“In the meantime, I’ll just keep my head down and I’m pretty sure the result is about to come.”

READ MORE – Why Williams harbours ‘shared frustration’ with Carlos Sainz over 2025 F1 setbacks

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Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has conceded that Lewis Hamilton can “make things worse” when he “sometimes exaggerates problems he sees” with his car in Formula 1.

Vasseur has recognised both parties “underestimated” the challenge awaiting Hamilton when he made the much-anticipated switch during the winter from Mercedes.

The Frenchman’s revelation comes as Hamilton has endured an onerous debut season with the Italian marque, one that is threatening to end without a single podium.

Hamilton experienced another setback prior to the summer break as he started outside the top 10 in Hungary, while team-mate Charles Leclerc secured pole position.

That prompted a downcast Hamilton to express that he is now “useless” and even to suggest that Ferrari should contemplate having another driver alongside Leclerc.

The Briton’s mood improved little as he did not progress in the race, leading him to disclose that things are happening behind the scenes at Ferrari “that are not great”.

Vasseur, whose relationship with Hamilton pre-dates F1, stressed that it’s important to exude calmness when the seven-time F1 champion has an emotional outburst.

Asked what he can do to ease Hamilton’s transitional phase at Ferrari, Vasseur told Auto Motor und Sport: “Stay calm.

“Build on the fact that he has already taken the first step. Don’t let things like what happened in Budapest get you down.

“Lewis is very self-critical. He is always extreme in his reactions. Sometimes he is too hard on the car, sometimes on himself.

“He wants to get the most out of himself and everyone in the team.

“You have to calm him down and explain to him that in Q2 [in Hungary] he was only a tenth behind the driver [Leclerc] who took pole position. That’s no big deal.

“The message he sends out only makes things worse.

“Most of the time, he’s only that extreme with the press. By the time he comes into the briefing room, he’s usually calmed down again. That’s just his way.

“For me, it’s no big deal. He demands a lot. From others, but also from himself. I can live with that.”

How Ferrari intends to address Hamilton struggles

Hamilton divulged that he has been sending documents to Ferrari as he endeavours to ensure that he avoids encountering the issues that have hindered him in 2025.

The ex-Mercedes driver has struggled to master the engine braking that Ferrari uses, while there have also been complications with Brembo’s revised brake materials.

Vasseur has insisted that there is not one overriding element that has impacted Hamilton, whom he has contended has a tendency to overstate any problem he feels.

“We solve the problems step by step,” he continued. “They’re not huge, they just look that way.

“If the braking system isn’t quite how the driver would like it, then maybe half a tenth is lost there.

“From the outside, it’s often difficult to quickly identify exactly where he’s losing that half-tenth.

“Such a minimal time difference can ruin your whole weekend. It can be the difference between Q2 and Q3.

“Lewis sometimes exaggerates the problems he sees in the car. The team then naturally wants to respond and everyone jumps on the problem.”

READ MORE – Ferrari makes concession over Lewis Hamilton F1 struggles

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Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur conceded that it “underestimated” the challenge Lewis Hamilton would face adapting to the team after his Formula 1 move from Mercedes.

Hamilton has endured a turbulent debut campaign with Ferrari, one where his results on track haven’t aligned with the mass anticipation that accompanied his switch.

The Briton was victorious on his second weekend with the side in the China Sprint Race, but he has gone the entire season to date without a Grand Prix podium in red.

That has contributed to Hamilton dropping 42 points behind Charles Leclerc, who has outraced his more experienced team-mate on all but two occasions in 14 races.

Hamilton went into the summer break having qualified outside the top 10 in both Belgium and Hungary, prompting him to state that Ferrari should look to replace him.

But with Ferrari committed to making the partnership thrive, Vasseur has recognised that both parties undervalued the time it would take Hamilton to get up to speed.

“Lewis and I, we collectively, probably underestimated the change of environment, and the fact that he spent, for me, 20 years in the same team,” he told The Race.

“McLaren was Mercedes, and then he moved to Mercedes [in 2013]: an English team [based in Brackley], same engine guys, that same culture and so on.

“So he spent 2006 to 2024, 18 years, in this environment, and then he arrived at Ferrari. And we were stupidly expecting that he will have everything under control.”

Vasseur highlighted that Hamilton is not as accustomed to changing teams as his predecessor, Carlos Sainz, whose switch to Williams marked his fourth since 2015.

“He’s not the guy who changed team every two years,” he pinpointed.

“You have guys on the grid that, if you have a look on Carlos, for example, he did Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren, us and Williams in eight years.

“He changed four times. He’s used to dealing with this. Lewis was not the case.”

Why Ferrari is not worried about latest Hamilton downturn

Vasseur has stressed that he is not worried about Hamilton’s downturn, citing that slim margins derailed the progress he had been building prior to the double-header.

“Culturally speaking, there is a bigger difference between Ferrari and Mercedes than between Mercedes and McLaren. And this we underestimated,” he reiterated.

“It took Lewis four or five races to be a bit more in control. And I would say that from Canada, Spain, UK, Austria, he was there. He was.

“In Spa he had a tough weekend, but for different reasons with a difficult qualifying. But then in the race, he was very good. And [Hungary] I think it was more details.

“If you have a look at the [qualifying] classification, you see one is P1, the other is P12. But we were not far away from having Charles P11 and Lewis P12.”

Likewise, Vasseur had no problem with Hamilton’s critical remark during the Hungaroring weekend as he pinpointed that all elite-level drivers share the same mindset.

“He’s like this, and sometimes he was also like this at Mercedes,” Vasseur, who oversaw Hamilton’s title-winning GP2 season in 2005, added. “For me, it’s not a drama.

“I understand the approach of the guy. I understand the philosophy, and the fact that he’s very, very demanding with me, with the engineers, with the mechanics, but mainly with himself.

“And this, I think, everybody can perfectly accept this, as long as the driver is also demanding with himself.

“The example of Nico Hulkenberg is also a very good one. He was mega, mega demanding with all the team in F3. But he was the first one to go jogging at 6.30am in the morning.

“For the mechanics, it was OK. As long as the guy is pushing on himself, they were keen to have someone demanding of them.”

READ MORE – Fred Vasseur hits back at question over Ferrari investment in Lewis Hamilton

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Oscar Piastri has insisted that he is not in a position where he can consider “banking points” over chasing race victories in his Formula 1 title battle with Lando Norris.

Piastri heads into the remaining 10 rounds – beginning with next weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix – with a mere nine-point lead at the summit over his McLaren team-mate.

The Australian’s cushion had been as high as 22 points when Norris clashed with him late in Canada and retired, but the Briton has rebounded well since that setback.

Norris won three times in four races in the build-up to the summer break to ensure that Piastri is not in a situation where he can be cautious and play the percentages.

McLaren’s stance has remained unchanged when it comes to letting Norris and Piastri race, providing the two avoid incidents that are detrimental to the team’s result.

But with both drivers in the running to win the Drivers’ Championship, Piastri revealed that there has been a small change to McLaren’s racing rules compared to 2024.

“I think there’s definitely been some changes. Even still now it’s too early to kind of just bank points and finish races for the sake of finishing races,” he told Autosport.

“You still need to try and put your best foot forward and score points. Obviously now in the Drivers’ Championship it’s very much a two-horse race, so there is kind of some one-on-one racing in some ways, which is probably a little bit of a change from what we’ve done previously.

“But a lot of what we’ve done previously has been to try and win Constructors’ Championship, and get the team the most points.

“When you’re fighting for first and second, you’re still getting the same amount of points.

“So there’s probably a few changes with that, but a lot of the rules of engagement and the general philosophy of how we go racing is still very much the same.”

How Piastri is handling maiden championship bid

Piastri, who has attained six victories to date in his third campaign, expressed that he subscribes to the cliche that the best approach is to take each race as it comes.

“I think the saying of ‘taking it race by race’, it sounds boring and kind of is boring in some ways, but it is very true,” he contended.

“You can’t worry about what’s going to happen in Abu Dhabi and take your focus off what you’re doing in the weekend, especially at the top of Formula 1.

“You’ve got to be on top of your game every single time and any focus you take away from that, it means you’re not at the top of your game.

“So as cliched as it is, it is genuinely about focusing on the race you’re in, trying to score the most amount of points.

“You could say I need 18 points every weekend for the rest of the year, which is finishing second, but if you’ve got a clear opportunity to win the race and you don’t take it, that’s not a great way of going racing in my opinion.

“So that’s how I always try and look at it. And that’s what I based my whole career off basically, leaving each weekend knowing that I’ve done the absolute maximum I can.

“Whether that looks like finishing fifth, whether it’s finishing second, whether it’s winning the race, ultimately trying to be happy with the performance I’ve put in, that’s all you can ask for.”

READ MORE – Why Helmut Marko thinks Oscar Piastri has the edge over Lando Norris in F1 title battle

The post Why Oscar Piastri is not prepared to play the percentages in 2025 F1 championship battle appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Alex Albon has revealed that Williams has set up an “active working group” to ensure that he and Carlos Sainz are best prepared to tackle Formula 1’s new 2026 rules.

The impending overhaul will see simultaneous changes to the chassis and engine regulations in a revamp that is considered among the biggest in the sport’s history.

There have been widespread reservations in several quarters, though, about the anticipated reduction in cornering speeds and the revised energy deployment system.

On the latter, Williams boss James Vowles has cautioned that work must be done across the upcoming months to alleviate the workload on the drivers in the cockpit.

Albon, who has experienced both the current and previous generation cars, has admitted that the 2026 challengers will be incomparable to what has come previously.

“I think it will be different to anything we’ve used before,” Albon told media including Motorsport Week.

“We will get used to it, that’s the job of the driver, but it is going to take some getting used to.”

Albon predicts increased winter simulator usage

Albon has predicted drivers will dedicate more time to the simulator over the winter break in order to get up to speed prior to their inaugural run in the actual 2026 car.

“Let’s just say, for example, our winter breaks that we spend, I don’t think it will be spent as casually as it was the previous few years where we’re training,” he added.

“I think there’s going to be so much more attention on simulator work that we’re going to be doing over the winter and making sure that we understand how it all works and trying different driving styles and things to make it work.”

Albon has divulged that Williams has established a group that is devoted to helping develop the understanding that he and Sainz have about the next-generation cars.

“I know, for example, at Williams we have an active working group,” the Anglo-Thai driver elaborated.

“We’re just working on how we can prepare the drivers as best as we can, giving us as much information and as much preparation as possible for next year.”

READ MORE – Alex Albon reveals how F1 drivers can ‘abuse the system’ of 2026 regulations

The post The measure Williams has taken to help drivers prepare for brand-new 2026 F1 cars appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Charles Leclerc remains confident that Ferrari can provide him with a title-challenging package in Formula 1, despite the setbacks the team has endured this season.

Leclerc had exuded optimism that the late surge that saw Ferrari almost take the Constructors’ Championship in 2024 would see it begin the campaign in contention.

However, Ferrari’s complications with the SF-25, combined with McLaren’s astounding winter improvement, have ensured the side’s title drought is poised to continue.

But although the team is still chasing an elusive win, the Italian marque has recovered to at least be the nearest rival to a dominant McLaren, albeit 299 points behind.

And with all-new regulations promising fresh opportunities in 2026, Leclerc is sanguine when it comes to Ferrari’s budding prospects under Fred Vasseur’s leadership.

“Fred is definitely part of it, but the biggest part is to see how the team works,” Leclerc told media including Motorsport Week regarding his continued faith in Ferrari.

“I’m sure we are working in the right direction.

“Next year will be a big turning point for us as it will be a new era of cars.

“Whenever you start a new era, if you are not starting it on the right foot, it’s always more difficult to come back because other teams are also pushing for upgrades.

“To close the gap is very difficult. We’ll have to start that on the right foot and then we’ll see.

“For now, I’m fully dedicated to try and make Ferrari great again and to win races again.”

Leclerc has derived encouragement from how Ferrari reacted to the unanticipated issues that arose with mid-season updates to alleviate the SF-25’s core limitations.

“The upgrades go in the right direction of making the life of the drivers a little bit easier because at the beginning of the season, it was extremely difficult,” he recalled.

“We had to set up the car in very extreme ways, and that made us also do more mistakes.

“Now we are a bit more in a reasonable window, which helps us to extract the maximum out of the car. It’s good that we see the result.”

Leclerc pleased with individual performance

Leclerc has continued to impress despite Ferrari’s troubles, scoring the side’s five podiums to date and outracing team-mate Lewis Hamilton on all but two occasions.

“In terms of my own performance, I’m very happy with the way I perform,” the Monegasque admitted. “The best moment as a driver, no, because I want to win.

“So, as my own performance, I’m really happy.

“You always want to improve and obviously, like Silverstone, for example, was a very poor weekend from my side. Those weekends you want to have the least possible in a season.

“Apart from that, I’m very satisfied. That is a good thing.

READ MORE – Charles Leclerc: Ferrari willing to sacrifice extra F1 wind tunnel time for highest 2025 finish

The post Why Charles Leclerc remains hopeful about Ferrari prospects despite 2025 F1 setback appeared first on Motorsport Week.

George Russell has denied the notion that the delay behind him signing a new contract with Mercedes is due to his desire to possess a longer-term deal in Formula 1.

The announcement that Max Verstappen will remain at Red Bull has all but guaranteed that Russell will retain his place at Mercedes, alongside Kimi Andrea Antonelli.

Having delivered his strongest campaign to date with six podiums in 14 races, Russell wouldn’t be begrudged angling to agree terms that mirror his value to the team.

But despite his recognition that Mercedes could reignite interest in Verstappen at a later date, Russell has indicated that contract length has not been a sticking point.

The Briton, who is reported to be in discussions over a prospective renewal until 2027, has reiterated that his results on track will continue to determine his prospects.

“The priority for me is having a World Championship-winning car, and I want that to be with Mercedes. That is the number one priority,” Russell told Autosport.

“I think drivers who are chasing long-term deals feel they need that security.

“I’ve never had a long-term deal, and I don’t need a long-term deal, because it should always be about performance.

“And if I’m not performing, the team shouldn’t be tied in with me. That’s as simple as that.”

Likewise, Russell has noted that not being locked into a long-term deal leaves his options open in case Mercedes is unable to provide him a title-challenging package.

“It should work both ways,” he added. “But I’m not really chasing anything right now, and I’ve not really been in a position to chase.”

Russell willing to be patient at Mercedes

Mercedes had won an unprecedented eight consecutive Constructors’ titles up until the most recent regulation change in 2022, which coincided with Russell’s arrival.

But while Red Bull and McLaren have dominated since then, Russell has expressed his willingness to bide his time at Mercedes with new rules on the horizon in 2026.

“I’m definitely more hungry than ever just to try and perform,” the ex-Williams driver claimed.

“I would have hoped by now, seven seasons in, I would have at least had a year of fighting for a championship.

“When I joined Mercedes, we thought every year would be a championship fight. Unfortunately, it hasn’t turned out that way.

“It’s been the same for Charles [Leclerc] as well. Arguably, nobody would have predicted two years ago McLaren would have made this step. Lando [Norris] did five years with them and had no [title] fights either. So, you’ve just got to accept the fact that that is the nature of F1. That’s always been the case.

“And you look at Michael Schumacher, he was in his fifth year with Ferrari, in his 30s, before he won a championship with them. I’m 27, so I’ve still got a bit of time on my side.”

READ MORE – How George Russell vindicated Mercedes’ faith versus Lewis Hamilton

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Williams boss James Vowles admitted he is impressed by how McLaren has managed to dominate in Formula 1, despite the team’s aerodynamic testing restrictions.

Having won the Constructors’ title in 2024, McLaren has thrashed the competition with 11 victories in 14 races to open up a bordering on unassailable 299-point lead.

The Woking-based squad has consolidated the advantage it has harboured since the season began with recent updates, taking 1-2 finishes in the previous four races.

That has transpired even though McLaren’s status as reigning champions entitles the team to less wind tunnel time than its rivals, in line with the sport’s sliding scale.

Vowles, who is aiming to guide Williams back to the sharp end, has expressed his admiration towards how McLaren has dealt with such limitations to retain the edge.

Asked whether Williams’ four-place climb to fifth this season has caused the team to alter its plans, Vowles told media including Motorsport Week: “No. It doesn’t do that so much.

“Even before that kicked in, our Head of Aero, Adam Kenyon, was really good at getting the team completely understanding what the impact of it would be.

“And what the main impact is, is you do have, of course, reduced wind tunnel time, but you can be more efficient in the experiments that you’re doing.

“So actually, it’s an efficiency push that took place. And it focuses you.

“I think for transparency, I don’t think it’s too bad from where we were to fifth.

“I think it gets very difficult when you’re championship leading, which is why McLaren are very impressive.”

How McLaren has built commanding advantage

An instrumental aspect behind McLaren’s remarkable rise has been how the side has managed to avoid the development setbacks that have thwarted the opposition.

McLaren boss Andrea Stella is adamant that pattern has not been a coincidence, though, and is down to the collective attention on maximising the team’s correlation.

“This trend that we have been able to establish, whereby developments – being them from a mechanical point of view, but above all aerodynamic – have been successful, is the result of many factors,” Stella explained.

“There’s not much in Formula 1 [a] fundamental for success that is a magic bullet. It’s really the result of working on the fundamentals.

“The fundamentals don’t only involve the capacity to generate ideas, to create the next geometry for a floor or a front wing, but they also involve understanding the methodologies you use for this development and understanding when these methodologies will be not only effective in being innovative but also in giving you the confidence that what you have achieved in development in the wind tunnel or CFD will actually transfer into something that works trackside.

“This is part of generating the know-how as a team, which in itself is a very simple statement— ‘Let’s generate the know-how to have the best correlation’ – but in reality, is possibly one of the most complicated battlegrounds for any Formula 1 team. We have invested a lot from this point of view.

“I have to praise the quality of the people because even if we talk methodologies, they are always led by people.

“I have been very lucky that I could lean on very competent leaders and a very talented team.”

READ MORE – Why McLaren envisages renewed Ferrari F1 challenge across remaining 2025 races

The post Where McLaren has massively ‘impressed’ Williams in F1 2025 appeared first on Motorsport Week.

McLaren boss Andrea Stella expects Ferrari’s renewed threat to the team in the Hungarian Grand Prix to be maintained across the remaining Formula 1 races in 2025.

The anticipation heading into this campaign was that Ferrari and McLaren would continue the duel that saw the two contest the Constructors’ title to the wire in 2024.

However, the perennial rivals have seldom been close this season as McLaren has dominated proceedings, while Ferrari remains winless and trails 299 points behind.

But despite the Italian marque’s travails with a capricious SF-25, Charles Leclerc stunned McLaren at the Hungaroring when he snatched an unexpected pole position.

Leclerc was in contention to convert that into a win, too, until a sudden problem developed on his chassis in the third stint and he dropped outside the podium places.

But while the Monegasque has expressed concern that his one chance to seize a victory in 2025 went begging, Stella is certain that Ferrari will trouble McLaren again.

Asked whether Ferrari’s pace surprised him, Stella told media including Motorsport Week: “Not surprised, because Ferrari have been competitive over the last few races.

They were competitive in [the] dry in Silverstone, they were competitive in Belgium. Somehow, this wasn’t expressed fully.

“I think we saw yesterday that they were in condition to score the pole position, and today, it’s not like in the first stint we were holding back.

“We were trying to go as fast as possible, and Leclerc was managing the lead of the race with some degree of control. So, I’m not surprised.

“I think Ferrari is going to be a contender for victories for the remainder of the season.

“If anything, I was a little surprised by the evolution of the final part of the race. I’m not sure if there was any kind of problem on Leclerc’s car.

But definitely, anytime we were racing for the second part of the season, we would have to take into account that in qualifying and in the race, we would have to deal with Ferrari.”

Where else could McLaren encounter a challenge?

Stella’s weariness about Ferrari’s potential challenge comes despite McLaren registering four consecutive 1-2 finishes in the lead-up to the annual summer shutdown.

But with Mercedes having rectified the team’s mid-season slump and Max Verstappen in a capable Red Bull, Stella isn’t envisaging a straightforward run to Abu Dhabi.

“We would have to deal with Mercedes, and today, Max was a bit out of contention, but Max, I’m sure, will find a way to fight for victories,” he continued.

“So, there’s nothing obvious in this business.

“This is exactly what we said yesterday in our briefing after qualifying, and this is what we will keep repeating ourselves in the second part of the season.”

READ MORE – Max Verstappen highlights where McLaren has ‘incredible’ advantage over F1 rivals

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