Stella details cause of McLaren skid-block wear in Las Vegas GP

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has delivered a detailed explanation of the technical drama that led to both of the Woking-based outfit’s cars being thrown out of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Stella confirmed the causes, the misjudgments, and the “unexpected” dynamics behind the costly setback that turned a strong race into a costly setback.

Lando Norris had crossed the line second and Oscar Piastri fourth, only for post-race checks to reveal excessive skid-block wear on both MCL38s – a violation that left the stewards with no option but disqualification.

The fallout tightened the drivers’ championship dramatically, putting Max Verstappen level with Piastri and just 24 points behind Norris with two races to go.

Now, following McLaren’s internal investigation, Stella has provided a full account of what happened – and why the team believes this specific failure won’t repeat itself.

Early Alarms and Invisible Data

Stella says the team knew almost immediately that something was wrong beneath the car.

“From the early laps of the race, it was clear from the data that the level of unexpected porpoising would be a concern,” he explained, noting that the extent of the issue varied between the two McLarens.

“We were able to monitor the situation better on Lando’s car using telemetry data, but it was made more difficult on Oscar’s car, after we lost one of the sensors we use to establish the level of grounding.”

As porpoising increased, the consequences quickly became obvious.

“We realised relatively soon that this level of porpoising was causing a high level of skid wear energy and this is the reason why both drivers started to take remedial actions in various parts of the circuit,” the Italian added.

“Unfortunately, we also saw that, because of the car operating window and the circuit characteristics, most of these actions were not effective enough in reducing porpoising.”

Why Practice Didn’t Reveal the Danger

With FP1 severely disrupted and the rest of Friday running held in damp conditions, teams entered the race with an unusually small bank of usable data. Yet Stella rejects the idea that McLaren gambled too aggressively on set-up.

“The specific cause that led to the situation was the unexpected occurrence of extensive porpoising, inducing large vertical oscillations of the car,” he said.

“The level of porpoising was exacerbated by the conditions in which the car operated during the race, and it was not anticipated based on what we had seen in practice and based on the predictions of the car operating window in the race.”

According to Stella, the team had actually raised the car for the competitive sessions.

“Based on the data we had acquired in practice, we do not believe we took excessive risks in terms of ride height and we also added a safety margin for qualifying and the race, compared to practice, in terms of clearance to the ground. However, the safety margin was negated by the unexpected onset of the large vertical oscillations, which caused the car to touch the ground.”

Even slowing down was not a reliable solution.

“The porpoising condition that the car developed in the race was also a difficult one to mitigate, as even a reduction in speed – an action that, in theory, should increase clearance to the ground – was only effective in some parts of the track but in others was actually counterproductive.”

McLaren Accepts Penalty — But Questions Proportionality

Stella confirmed that McLaren verified the FIA’s measurements themselves.

“We verified together with the technical delegate, that the measurement of the skid thickness was correct,” he said. “Even if the excessive wear is relatively minor and in only one location, [as it was 0.12 mm for Lando and 0.26mm for Oscar], the regulation is very clear that the rear skids need to be at least 9mm at the end of the race in every location.”

But he also highlighted a broader issue with how technical penalties are applied.

“Unlike sporting or financial rules – there is no proportionality in the application of penalties for technical regulation infringements. The FIA itself has admitted that this lack of proportionality should be addressed in the future to ensure that minor and accidental technical infringements, with minimal or no performance benefits, do not lead to disproportionate consequences.”

Stella stressed that the FIA recognized McLaren had not acted deliberately.

“It should also be remembered that the FIA itself emphasised that the infringement was not intentional, there was no deliberate attempt to circumvent the regulations, and there were also mitigating circumstances, as we explained to the event Stewards.”

Looking Ahead to Qatar and Beyond

Despite the blow in Las Vegas, McLaren is confident the issue was specific to the circuit and the unusual combination of bumps, temperatures, and car sensitivities.

“The conditions we experienced last weekend and which led to the onset of porpoising and excess of grounding, compared to what was expected, are very specific to the operating window of the car in Vegas and the circuit characteristics,” he explained.

“We have a well-established and consolidated way of setting up the car and we are confident that this will lead us to an optimal plan for the coming races, starting from the Lusail International Circuit.”

• Read also: Norris poised to break historic F1 record in Qatar

And crucially, Stella says the team gained knowledge from the setback.

“Nevertheless, we learn from every lesson and the one in Las Vegas has been able to provide some useful information about the operating window of the car and the porpoising regime,” the McLaren chief concluded.

With two races left and championship positions tightening, McLaren will be eager to ensure that Las Vegas remains an anomaly – and that Stella’s explanations mark the end of a costly chapter rather than the start of a trend.

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