McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has described their competitors as `defocused` after the FIA confirmed the team`s car did not illegally use liquid cooling for its tyres prior to the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
McLaren`s dominant start to 2025, securing five wins in the first six races, appeared to trigger suspicions among rival teams regarding how the MCL39 was maintaining its tyres within their optimal operating window during races to enhance wear.
McLaren Racing chief executive Zak Brown even playfully highlighted rivals` suspicions in Miami by bringing a bottle labelled “tire water” to the pit wall.
Before the race weekend in Imola, the FIA announced that championship leader Oscar Piastri`s car had been randomly selected for `extensive physical inspections`. These checks included the wheel bodywork and a search for forbidden liquid cooling systems for brakes.
Ultimately, all components examined were found to be `in conformance` with the technical regulations.
“It`s somewhat unfortunate regarding the extra work this creates for the FIA, but that`s something for the FIA to manage,” Stella commented.
“Perhaps the FIA should implement a higher threshold for entertaining allegations, as this generates significant work for them and yields no results,” he added. “However, I welcome other teams being defocused.”
Flexi-wing Debate Continues, Focus Shifts to Barcelona
Over the past year, another area of dispute involving McLaren and raised by rivals concerns flexible wings.
Following the controversy known as `mini-DRS` last season, which questioned the degree of bodywork flexing on some rear wings at high speed, the FIA declared that new load tests for wings would be introduced for the 2025 season. Flexible bodywork remains illegal in F1.
Updated deflection limits for rear wings were enforced starting with the season opener in Melbourne and tightened further from the second round in China. The upcoming new tests in Barcelona will specifically address front-wing flexing.
Footage from various races this year has shown wings on several cars deflecting on the straights, potentially boosting straight-line speed, before returning to a rigid state for corners, thus maintaining maximum downforce.
McLaren bosses have previously stated the new Barcelona tests will not impact them. Stella maintains that “even if there was front wing deflection, it has nothing to do with the reason why McLaren is very competitive.”
He further added, “As McLaren, and for me as team principal, witnessing this level of attention from our rivals is good news. I hope to see even more of it in the future.”
“This indicates that our rivals are looking outwards rather than concentrating on fundamental engineering principles, which is precisely what we aim to do at McLaren – focusing on ourselves and the engineering basics that generate our strong performance.”
“If that`s the approach they choose to take, it continues to be good news for us.”
