F1 News: McLaren Chief Reveals Reason For Contentious Lando Norris Hungarian GP Undercut

McLaren's Team Principal Andrea Stella reveals the thought process behind Lando Norris's early pit stop in the Hungarian GP.

Jun 9, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; McLaren driver Lando Norris (GBR) (right) talks with Mercedes driver George Russell (GBR) after the Canadian Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports / Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has revealed the reasoning behind Lando Norris's earlier pitstop which ended up with contentious team order discussions asking the British driver to let his teammate Oscar Piastri pass for the win.

At the heart of the debate was the team’s early pit call for Norris. Stella explained that the scorching weather at the Hungaroring and the track’s challenging conditions played crucial roles in their strategic calculus. He commented to Sky Sports F1, as quoted by GP Blog:

"We knew that by going first with Lando that could have been the situation. But we wouldn't have done it if we weren't sure that this would be fixed. I think today, because we are at the Hungaroring and because it was so hot, there were two variables that we really wanted to get right.

"The first one, we didn't want to pit too early because the tyres were degrading a lot and we didn't want to run out of tyres should we stop and become a problem at the end of the race. Therefore, we just wanted to delay the pit stop as much as possible. The second element is that you can have a problem at the pit stop. So you need to go safe from a pit stop point of view. Do you want to pit only when you have three seconds? Because then you know what happens, that all the pressure goes on the pit crew.

"I don't want in a race like today that the responsibility goes to the pit crew. I'd rather take the responsibility at the pit wall, secure the P1 and P2 and then we manage the situation between the pit wall and the drivers. Because we talk about the situation and we know how we go about the situation."

He continued:

 "I just did not want to have a situation at the pit stop where there's a problem with a nut, there's a problem with the execution, that puts us behind a Mercedes or a .

"We have seen with Verstappen today what can happen. Verstappen would have had the tyres much fresher than the guys ahead. I think we would be talking something else if that was the case, like it happened to Verstappen. I know that for the media, I know that for watching on TV this becomes a story.

"But for us internally, this becomes part of the way we go racing and that's why we invest so much in culture, in values and in the mindset. Because we want to be able to manage this situation if we want to be in the championship with Lando, with Oscar and with McLaren."