McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said the team face a challenge deciding their strategy for today’s Monaco Grand Prix due to the new rules which have been introduced.
In a departure from Formula 1’s usual regulations, all drivers must change tyres at least twice during today’s race.
McLaren go into the race in the strongest position of any team, with Lando Norris on pole position and Oscar Piastri third. However Stella admitted it is far from clear what the best strategy will be.
“When we looked at all the implications of having two mandatory pit stops, we realised that these implications are really large,” he told the official F1 channel. “It looks very simple, it’s two stops mandatory, in reality the race can unfold in many different ways, there’s many options on the table.
“Some of them we could go through [pre-emptively], but now that we have the grid order I think we can do more refinement work and consider the starting tyres, consider the various options as to what the opposition can do. But it’s far from obvious and I think it will be quite interesting.”
Stella said the team risked compromising its qualifying strategy by not using the medium compounds in order to ensure they have the widest possible range of tyres available for the race. Norris and Piastri both have two fresh sets of hard tyres and two new mediums, more than any of their rivals inside the top 10.
“We have two sets of hard, it [created] some pressure in qualifying, but we were confident in the execution of our drivers and in the speed of the car, and it worked out well,” he said.
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free
He downplayed whether the team would be prepared to order either of their drivers to reduce their pace in order to assist the other. “In terms of collaboration, we are lucky at McLaren because we have two great drivers, two great individuals, and this allows us to have several options that we can consider,” said Stella.
Pole position in Monaco has previously been a significant advantage. But Norris expects the new rules will create more chances for those starting behind him to challenge for the lead.
“Sadly, I think there’ll be more opportunity for everyone,” he said. “But that’s the way it is. That’s what Formula 1 has done to just try and put on more of a show.
“Of course, in my position now, I probably don’t agree with what’s been done. But I’m not the one who makes the rules, so we’ll see.”
Miss nothing from RaceFans
Get a daily email with all our latest stories – and nothing else. No marketing, no ads. Sign up here:
Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free
2025 Monaco Grand Prix
Browse all 2025 Monaco Grand Prix articles
News
