McLaren boss Andrea Stella has claimed that he views it as “good news” that its Formula 1 rivals chose to make noise about the team’s contentious rear wing design.
The build-up to the Singapore Grand Prix witnessed extensive talk surrounding the behaviour of the rear wing on Oscar Piastri’s McLaren during his win in Azerbaijan.
Footage revealed that the upper element on the MCL38’s rear wing rotated at high speed to open up a slot gap, reducing drag and providing it with a top-speed boost.
McLaren’s component had applied with the FIA’s static pit lane tests, but several competitors were unsatisfied and elected to seek additional clarification on the rules.
The topic ended last weekend with the outcome that McLaren has agreed to make changes to the low-drag rear wing which is set to be used once more in Las Vegas.
READ MORE: FIA ask McLaren to modify rear wing after F1 rivals complain
However, Stella isn’t downbeat that external pressure has caused McLaren to lose a potential gain as he derived encouragement from the opposition being distracted.
“I find that so much attention on our rear wing is just good news, because it means that opponents are not focusing on themselves,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“Formula 1 is such a marginal game. It’s so complicated. I keep repeating to my team: ‘Focus on yourself’.
“So for me, when I see that there’s so much attention from other teams, it means that they will be doing work, they will be doing analysis, they will be talking to the FIA.
“They’re using this time and energy to chase something that I think is a red herring. So for me, as McLaren, that’s just good news.
“We try to stay focused on ourselves. We want to come with technical solutions that may be challenging but totally sound from a legality point of view.
“If others want to get destructive, keep doing that. Because for us, it’s just good news.”
McLaren urges FIA to investigate other F1 teams
Stella has divulged that McLaren was willing to adhere to the FIA’s demands as it hopes that the discussion could prompt an investigation into other teams’ workings.
“For us, making changes is pretty much transparent, so we may as well do it, as it won’t be a big consequence from a performance point of view,” said Stella.
“This also gave us the opportunity to [remind] the FIA that, you know, we also do some due diligence in terms of studying other people.
“We don’t want to spend so much energy and time with journalists and trying to create big stories. We just told the FIA what we think is happening.
“We trust, and we are confident, that they will talk to the other teams and make sure that they fix their own issues, which may be less visible, but definitely they do exist.”
READ MORE: McLaren expects FIA to talk with rival F1 teams over rear wings
Pressed on what he had seen on rivals’ cars, Stella replied: “I will not be precise, because I would be disclosing information that I think fits within a confidentiality range.
“For some reasons, this slot gap seems to have become something that dominates F1.
“There’s many ways in which other cars are exploiting aerodynamic pressure on surfaces – actually, based on our analysis, some of them are just quite a lot more effective.
“But we do trust the FIA. They are very competent people from a technical point of view.
“To be honest, when we have conversations with them, not only do we see that they understand mechanisms, but they also understand what is going on with our competitors.
“They always seem to be pretty equipped in terms of understanding whether some of the tests are suitable – to limit some mechanisms or ways of aerodynamic pressure.
“I think we are in good hands from a policy point of view, with the FIA, and I think we should have all parties – teams, journalists, everyone – [give] a little bit more respect for the FIA and their technical department, because they do a very good job.
“It’s not a simple job. Sometimes we should praise what they do. And I don’t see this being done very much.”
