McLaren aware of team’s headache ordering team to bring home title at Abu Dhabi GP

mclaren Boss Andrea Stella believes in this lando norris And oscar piastri Will not be selfish and will put his desire to win the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix ahead of the team’s constructors’ championship ambitions.

The Woking-based team stands on the cusp of its first teams’ title in the F1 season finale since 1998 as it holds a 21-point advantage ferrariA win at Yas Marina would give him the crown.

But having locked out the front row of the grid, the team is conscious of the complications that could arise from its driver duo fighting too hard for victory.

And that’s not ruling out the scenario that any collision could open the door for the third-placed Ferrari driver carlos saenz To take advantage of this and get a win that gives the Scuderia the crown.

Stella says he is fully “aware” of the need to manage the situation among the drivers, especially after a season where he faced anger over the enforcement of team orders at various stages of the campaign. Had to do.

But while things have not always been perfectly executed between Norris and Piastri this year, Stella is confident the pair will handle things differently this time as they know the ultimate price for everyone at McLaren is for the Constructors’ Title. What is.

“When we deal with drivers, we always need to be mindful that they are out to win races,” Stella said.

“They grow up with that mindset in karting. They always think that way, and then at some stage in their career, you tell them, like, ‘Oh no, it’s not about you guys winning. Here is what the team’s victory has been told.

“So first of all, awareness. We are very aware. During the season, we already had more than one conversation with two of our drivers, and we told them that this is the only situation in which the three of us do not have the same interests.

“So we can’t face something completely united because both drivers: each of them wants to win.”

Stella says that while the team will need to carefully consider what kind of team will impose orders on their drivers today to ensure it does not slip, he believes they will both be well Understand what is at stake today and why a different approach is needed.

He added, “Whenever we had these conversations, I was always amazed at how easy it was to get the point across.”

“The first interest is the team, and it will be the same conversation (on Sunday morning). We have the launch, we have the first corner, the first lap, all the situations for which we will have the best possible preparation.

“Sometimes really, when it’s about close racing, you can’t be too prescriptive, because drivers can really feel safest just following instinct.

“But what is important is that you program the instinct with a clear objective, and the objective of tomorrow is to bring home the championship.

“And I have to say that when I spoke with Oscar and Lando as well, they both thought about where we are in ourselves and our careers, and in the journey with McLaren, the Constructors’ Championship they really care about. In) ) the most.”

If Ferrari has any hope of securing the Constructors’ Championship it will need to stop McLaren from winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – which means it will need to go on the attack.

This creates the danger of perhaps adopting things with too conservative a mindset for McLaren, who could then risk leaving the door open to their rival.

Asked about the approach it is taking, Stella said it is important that McLaren does not get complacent about things.

Stella explained, “I think we should approach the race in the same way as we have done over the weekend, repeating to ourselves that we will continue to do what we have done before.” “And that’s true in racing, too.

“I think if you start hesitating, you can take wrong decisions. And so far, I must say that the team has been quite good, quite calm, cool and focused.

“Even during qualifying, nobody really held anything back. As you can see with Oscar. He went into Q3 and he went for it, and he was at the limit of lap elimination which was then reinstated.

“So obviously, we will have some words of caution, but in fairness, we would like to win the race. So that would be the aim, and I think it’s also the safest way to make sure we get the points we need for the championship.