FIA Team Principals press conference – Azerbaijan

TEAM REPRESENTATIVES
Jonathan WHEATLEY (Kick Sauber), Andrea STELLA (McLaren), Alan PERMANE (Racing Bulls)

Q: Andrea, perhaps we could start with you. Potentially a huge weekend for McLaren. Now, you've enjoyed a lot of success in your career — 14 world titles so far — and potentially another Constructors’ Championship this weekend. Are the emotions different this weekend to 2024?

Andrea STELLA: Well, first of all, let's go and win it. Like, it's not ours yet. In terms of the feeling we have at the moment in this quest for the 2025 title, yeah, they are different to last year.

Last year, the championship came as a surprise, much earlier than expected in terms of the trajectory of the team. Only in Miami we could take the first victory. Actually, it was here in Baku that we took the lead in the championship. And at the end, it was a great surprise and a great joy.

This year, we realized relatively soon that the car was very competitive, that we were in condition to win races. So it was more about keeping the concentration, keeping the focus, maximising the potential available. And also this year, we have one more dimension, which is the fact that we have also the drivers in contention for the Drivers’ Championship.

Q: Where do you think the team has raised the bar in particular this year?

AS: Many aspects. Obviously, in Formula 1, you try and improve in every possible area of going racing. But I would say if I had to pick one, that is from a technical point of view. I think the car itself is just a much better car. It's very innovative compared to last year. We decided to go for development in pretty much every single part of the car. We required some bravery in some areas of the car, for instance in the front suspension and some other parts that are less visible. So for me, that's where the biggest step forward has happened. And obviously, like I said, the race team and the drivers themselves — we are all developed.

Q: Twelve wins from 16 races. You're on 617 points so far. Can you beat Red Bull's points record from 2023 - 860?

AS: Well, the record that Jonathan here and his previous team have been able to set as a benchmark is just incredible. It's remarkable. For us, this is a reference, but this is not what we think about. What we think about is one race at a time. Like we saw in Monza, things cannot be taken for granted. Red Bull was faster than us in Monza in qualifying and in the race. We had the DNF in Zandvoort on Lando's car. So before we think about the final destination, we have to make sure that we maximise at every single stage.

Q: Final one from me. Can we throw it back to Monza now? A lot has been said and written about you swapping your drivers in the closing stages. First of all, have you been surprised by the amount of noise since then?

AS: No. No surprise, really. I think noise around racing situations is natural. Formula 1 is a very popular sport. What's important for us is that comments are respectful. And when they are respectful, we welcome them, we listen, we take them into account — even if ultimately what counts for us is not the external noise, but what we make of it internally and how we set ourselves to keep going racing.

Q: And once the Constructors’ Championship is in the bag, will your approach to the Drivers’ title change?

AS: No. The approach to the Drivers’ title will not change. This is not dependent on the Constructors’. The way we go racing is dependent on the racing principles, on the values that we embody as McLaren Racing, and also is a reflection of the fact that we want to protect the unity of the team, which is a foundational condition for the future.

Q: Jonathan, can we come to you now and throw it back to Monza to start with — just to Nico's problem that prevented him making the start? What was it, and are you confident that there won't be a repeat here in Baku?

Jonathan WHEATLEY: Yeah. I mean, it's always painful when you let one of your drivers down as a team. You can imagine we've looked at forensic detail at what happened. We understood very clearly the problem — very quickly, actually — and the team responded very well in terms of rectifying that. Even so, the last parts actually arrived here last night and were fitted to the car this morning. So that particular issue, I think we're on top of. And of course, core reliability is something that we're all trying to achieve. It's an ongoing journey. It's not always straightforward. These cars are incredibly complicated. The tiniest detail can make the difference.

Q: What about performance then? I mean, the car was quick in Gabi's hands in Monza — inside Q3, obviously. Does that translate then to here? Do you expect to be competitive here?

JW: I think the car's more competitive, full stop. The upgrades have been hugely positive. And I've said before that the drivers are enjoying driving the car now. They can really push the car and get a time out of it — and consistently do that. We still have our Achilles heel from time to time. Zandvoort wasn't a great showing from us. I mean, fortunately, we got a result out of it. Monza, the car was very competitive. And here, it’s such a tricky circuit. Watch the cars going through Turns 9, 10, 11, 12 and what have you. I don't think anyone's having an easy run through there. And we'll see. I think we just have a more competitive platform. Of course, our target is to try to score points at every race.

Q: Now, qualifying, specifically can we talk about Nico Hülkenberg? Because you have to go back to Canada to the last time he outqualified Bortoleto. And Nico, throughout his career, has been recognized as a one-lap specialist. Is he having a particular issue with this car, or is it just a reflection of the job that Bortoleto is doing?

JW: No. I think we have to put it in perspective. Nico's a super-fast driver over one lap and race pace — I mean, he's extraordinary. He turns up every weekend in top form. And if you actually analyse, as the team does, every single element of qualifying performance, he's had a run of a few things — self-inflicted, a few things where the car has been a bit tricky in some conditions as well. I don't think there's an underlying problem here that we need to be concerned about at all. And as with all of these things, it can turn itself around in a heartbeat. When we talk about how close it is in the midfield pack and the fight that we're in, we're often talking about a thousandth of a second or two hundredths of a second — the difference between getting through to the next period of qualifying. And I think that's just what we're seeing. I mean, if I look across the grid, if you're fortunate to be a consistent top-10 qualifier, there's bigger gaps between the drivers there.

Q: Final one for me. Can we throw it forward now to 2026? Only six months until Melbourne next year for the first race. Can you just give us a little insight into what's going on in Hinwil and at Neuburg? And have you introduced any new processes to deal with the new regulations?

JW: Well, it's a hugely busy time for every Formula 1 team, and everyone's focus naturally turns to 2026. We are on schedule with our dyno program. The engine's been on the dyno for a while now. The focus now is on reliability because, as you say, we'll be running the car in an incredibly short period of time. It's an exciting period in the Audi F1 project, obviously mating chassis and powertrain together for the first time in December. Our simulator programme naturally starts to lean towards 2026 as well. But I think in both of those programmes, it's a little bit too early to talk about performance — which might be your next question. And of course, we won't really know any of this until the first qualifying session and the first race in Melbourne.

Q: Thank you, Jonathan. And Alan, coming to you now. Let's talk about performance with you. The car raced well in Monza last time out. How confident are you coming to Baku as a result?

Alan PERMANE: Very confident. We've managed to put both cars into Q3 the three races before Monza. Of course, Monza is a bit of an outlier in terms of setup and downforce level, but we had a messy Saturday. We've had a good morning this morning — both our cars in the top 10. We're fully aligned with our target of getting both into Q3 this weekend.

Q: You say you had a messy Saturday in Italy. Are you going to change anything for qualifying here in Baku?

AP: One of the things I always ask myself after every weekend is: what would you do if you went back again? And I think if we went to Monza next weekend, we definitely would do a different quali — certainly a different Q1 programme. I think here, it's a bit easier to plan your qualifying.

It's a bit of a Monaco with low downforce, so track time is invaluable. So, undoubtedly, it won't be two single push laps in Q1 — there will be multiple laps and multiple sets of tyres. So I think the circuit itself lends itself to a different plan anyway.

Q: Okay. And drivers now, if we could. The silly season has gone into full steam ahead, and it seems that the two Red Bull seats are what a lot of people are interested in. Me too. Can we start by talking about some of your drivers? Isack Hadjar, first of all — what are his strengths as a driver?

AP: So of course, the first strength is he's incredibly quick — and without that, all the other strengths are kind of insignificant, really. He's got the speed, which we've seen. One thing I like about him is he's ready to listen, he's ready to accept advice and help. He doesn't want to do everything his own way. He knows… what has he done now, 15 races? Maybe 16? I'm not sure. Sixteen. So he's happy to accept advice and input from others and take that on board and learn from it. We can see sometimes he's a little bit harsh on himself, which he's working on, I think. But strength-wise, I think that's the main takeaway is that he's happy to learn.

Q: Do you think he'd be ready for a step up to Red Bull Racing?

AP: I think that’s a tricky one at this time of year. And, fortunately, we don’t have to make that decision at this time of year. I'm very sure — and I think it’s been said — that it will be later in the season, much later in the season. I think what we have to do for Isack is to make sure that we — the trackside team — deliver perfection for him. So he’s got a car he can perform well in, and he needs to perform well. He needs to deliver perfection as well. And I think we’ve seen, when he does that and when the car is right and suits the circuit, and he puts it all together, we can have a super strong weekend.

Q: Final one for me. Liam was in here yesterday, and this was a topic we discussed with him. What’s he got to do in these remaining races to stay with the team next year?

AP: I think the same as Isack, the same as all other 19 drivers are trying to do — execute perfect race weekends. No one’s going to be bringing any more upgrades — or I doubt very much anyone's bringing any more upgrades this weekend. So we’ve got what we’ve got at the track. We’ve got the car that we’ve got. So it’s for him and his engineers — and the support we have back from the UK and Faenza in Italy — to deliver as close to a perfect car as we can for him. And he needs to deliver perfect race weekends.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Nigel Chiu – Sky Sports) Question for Andrea. You said after Monza you would review the situation and discuss the swapping of the drivers. Going forward, has anything changed regarding team orders or swapping? And if so, what has changed?

AS: Like after every race weekend, we review how we operate, the decisions we make, like the driving and so on. We did the same after Monza, and we could confirm that the way we operated is what we intended, is what we can confirm for the future. So while we remain open and attentive to anything that happens, I think that situation gave us a possibility to confirm our approach.

Q: (Ronald Vording – Motorsport.com) It's one for Andrea and one for Alan, if that's OK. To Andrea: Picking up on what Tom said about the noise — some of that noise from fans was the feeling that it's, in certain moments, too much orchestrated from the pit wall, this title fight. What would your reaction be to that? And to Alan: You mentioned the strength of Isack. What are still the main areas for improvement in your opinion?

AS: Like I said before, racing situations are definitely susceptible to different interpretations. So we are comfortable with the noise, with the comments. We welcome the comments. Like I said before, what's important is that they always remain respectful. Respect is a very important value for McLaren Racing, and I'm sure for everyone. So, no surprise around the noise. From the pit wall, we execute what we agree with our drivers, which ultimately becomes our racing principles and approach. In that situation, like I explained after the race, and like I think Lando and Oscar have explained yesterday — because we sequenced the two cars in a certain way at the pit stop, going with the car behind — then we required a swap. This compounded with the slow stop led to a swap. But the situation that we had with the sequence in terms of strategy is the same as Hungary, and we acted consistently with the situation we had in Hungary.

AP: Yeah. Regarding Isack and what he can do to improve — I think, of course, he's working on all areas and what he can do better. If I had one area he could do better on, it's maybe qualifying. And I don't say that as a negative. I think when he gets it right, we see what he can do — in Zandvoort, fourth on the grid. He was heading for a similar result in Budapest and didn't quite get it right, got caught out by the wind. There's a couple of times — which is completely understandable in a rookie season — where you don't put that final lap together when you're in that final session and the pressure's there. So if I had one thing he could do slightly better, I guess it's some qualifying consistency.

Q: (David Schneider – Hershey Shiga Global) Question for Alan. You have worked with three of the four Red Bull drivers — two as team principal. What stands out working with Yuki Tsunoda when you were working with him last year?

AP: His speed, for one thing. I didn’t know Yuki at all before I started with the team in ’24, and I was immediately impressed by him — by his pace, by how he can handle the tyres, his qualifying pace, how he could get on top of the tyres as quickly as he did to extract the most out of the car in qualifying. That was the very first thing that surprised me. And honestly, his feedback, and the way he is in the car, the way he drives, the way he's out of the car — are really in line with the top drivers. He's a great driver. And honestly, that was a little bit of a — let’s say — it was a surprise. I guess I hadn’t thought about it, but it was a nice surprise when I got to start working with him.

Q: (Josh Suttill – The Race) One driver yesterday said that one consequence of the budget cap is that the pecking order has been a bit more static this year compared to the final year of regulations, say 2008 or 2013. Is that something you agree with, or is that for a different reason, do you think?

JW: Yeah. I mean, we’ve got a fantastic championship this year, haven’t we? We’ve got the pack separated often by eight tenths of a second in the first period of qualifying. I do feel it’s just a natural coming together of a set of technical regulations that have been relatively stable for a certain period of time. I’d say from my team’s perspective, I’ve been very encouraged by how we found performance on a car that was struggling a little bit at the beginning of the year, and we’ve turned it around in such a tight field. But I think it’s more a factor that the technical regulations have been stable for a while.

AP: Yeah. Agreed. Completely.

AS: I would add that the budget cap is one of the most important aspects of the regulations that we have in place to guarantee the health and the viability of the sport. So I think it’s important we remark that. At the same time, let me say that, for instance, we at McLaren have been able to make a decent step forward under the budget cap, because I think ultimately you can find performance not only from a financial point of view, but also from a technical point of view. So I don’t think the budget cap is a limitation.

Q: (Rodrigo França – Car Magazine Brazil) Question to Andrea. You had a very successful car here with Ferrari and now are winning titles with McLaren. How do you compare the experience in these two teams, please?

AS: Okay, I need to go for the short version, I guess. I always say that the differences are much less than one could think. Even throughout my career at Ferrari, there’s been different versions of Ferrari while you were under the same roof and the same name. So I think the potential — even the evolution of the team at Ferrari — might have exhibited differences or bigger changes than I might have found going from Ferrari to McLaren. Certainly both teams — like every team in Formula 1 — are characterised by trying to select the best people, trying to pursue the highest standards. Definitely, the saying that at Ferrari you may have quite a lot of external pressure coming from the media, from the attention you receive — it's like the motor sport national team — let me say, this is true, and definitely you have to cope with that. But at the same time, at McLaren, I have to say that you receive quite a lot of attention. And we were receiving a lot of attention when we were last, and we are receiving a lot of attention now. Today, we’ve been discussing Monza for quite a while. So, many more similarities than differences, for what I could have experienced.

Q: Andrea, everyone talks about the passion at Ferrari. Do you experience something similar at McLaren?

AS: When it comes to the passion associated with being part of the team — the pride of being part of the team, wearing the jersey, whether Ferrari or McLaren — I do experience the same. And if anything, an important part of the way Zak and myself are trying to shape the team, create the right values in the team, has to do with the sense of affiliation. The sense of being willing to keep improving yourself, to keep improving the team — because we want to see this team winning. And you need to make sure that you instil these values within each of the 1,000 people. So when it comes to passion, when it comes to bringing emotions into the game, when emotions are diverted in the right direction, they are actually a great resource. So yeah, I would say that passion is a common characteristic at my previous team and at my current team.

Q: (Adam Cooper – Adam Cooper F1) A question for all three of you. Williams won the Right of Review case last week. Historically, it's been quite rare for the stewards to accept evidence and then change their decision. I just wonder what your thoughts were on that case. Was it a one-off, a special circumstance, or will it potentially encourage teams to challenge penalties more often in the future? I'm thinking, for example, if something happens in the last race that's maybe a constructor’s position and a lot of money is at stake.

AP: Thank you. I guess it will open the door to more challenges, I think. But for a Right to Review, you need to supply some new, significant, and relevant evidence. And I think one of the things they accepted was that Carlos didn’t have a chance to talk. So his testimony was new evidence. If you make a decision in the race, you're automatically going to have that as a chance to challenge it. I think what we want to see, what everyone wants to see is racing — close racing and overtaking. And, of course, we were on the wrong end of it, but we don’t want cars to have to follow each other and be bound by very rigid things. So if it does just open that up a little bit and mean that Carlos could be alongside there, I think everyone will welcome that. We don’t want cars driving into each other, but we also don’t want a procession, do we?

AS: Jonathan is the expert here, but… Well, my comment is that, in general, I’m in favour of making the possibility to reopen a case a little easier. Then, as soon as we state this principle, the way this is actually translated in the real world becomes quite technical. But the message which I can give from a team principal point of view is that having an easier way to reconsider cases and rectify decisions is something we should definitely make sure is possible. Then I would leave to the experts the technicalities as to how you make this happen. But at the moment — or up until the last couple of cases — the threshold was too high for acceptance.

JW: To start off by talking about protests, appeals, and Right of Reviews — they’re a fundamental part of the sport, and they’re very important. Each of them serves its own purpose. As Andrea was alluding to, I’ve sat in more than my fair share of those in the Stewards over the years, and the bar's been set very high. As Alan said, there’s a lot of criteria that need to be met, which is why it's unusual for them to be upheld. So I think what that tells you, fundamentally, is that all of those criteria — that very strict set of criteria — was met. I also echo the comments about racing. It’s absolutely paramount to the sport that the drivers are free to race, and one of our slogans is “let them race” in the team principals’ group. We’re trying to support that. So I think it’s good. That was a great bit of on-track action, and it feels to me like the right decision was made in the Right of Review process.

Q: (Shana Lutgert – F1Maximaal.nl) A question for Jonathan. You've worked with Max for a very long time, and now you're working with Gabi, who is also a very talented rookie showing quick progress, absorbing everything. Do you see some kind of similarities between the two of them — let’s say, from Max in his younger years and Gabi now in his first half of the season?

JW: Yeah. I always find it difficult to compare drivers because everyone’s an individual. What would I say about both of them? Both inherently, naturally fast. Actually, both race each other on the simulator either side of a race weekend as well. And both just seem to have that capacity to drive the car but have loads more capacity left to think about the rest of the situation. Obviously, looking back to Max — he’d already served a pretty good apprenticeship at Toro Rosso at the time before he came to Red Bull. I’ve known his father, I’ve known the family for years. I’ve known Max since he was a tiny little boy. And I’ve just got to meet Gabriel. But it’s the same thing — these guys are ultra-competitive, and they’re looking for every single advantage in everything. They both share a great work ethic and a love for racing. Both of them — given an opportunity — are driving something else or on a simulator.

Q: (Josh Suttill – The Race) Question for Jonathan and for Alan. There’s been a lot of talk about the pit lane games that are going on in qualifying. How much of a challenge is that? Because we’ve heard that teams are turning their engines on and off and trying to trick each other about when they’re going to go out of the pits.

AP: That may be slightly exaggerated. Certainly from our side, we’re focused on our qualifying and on getting the best out of it. Now it’s fair to say that the way the rules are with the pit lane at the moment, it’s tricky — especially if you’re down the end of the pit lane like myself and Jonathan are and you do have to get out quick, and especially at a restart, you’re right, you do see cars starting their engines up, and with the rule that you can’t enter the pit lane until there’s a restart time, it means you start to second-guess that. But I don’t think there’s a huge issue there. And if it’s for safety — which it is — then I guess it’s a good thing.

JW: Not much more to add, to be honest. I mean, can you imagine if any of us were trying to get a competitive advantage? It’s qualifying. As Alan says, when you’re at the end of the pit lane, if the cars close up in the queue, you just can’t get in. And actually, I think very pragmatically, the FIA have come up with some guidelines. We lost a front wing in one race as a result of not following those guidelines in qualifying. But I think it’s all part of what makes it exciting. And we’ve got to remember that it stopped the on-track safety issue that we were having around the last series of corners with cars at vastly different speeds. So I think it’s a small price to pay.

Q: (Nigel Chiu – Sky Sports) One more for Andrea. McLaren could seal the Constructors’ title could this weekend — and it’s only two and a half years ago that you guys were towards the back, and before that there were financial problems at the team. Was there a time period over the last five years when you and Zak thought you had the ingredients to make that big step forward and become champions? Was there a specific time when it clicked?

AS: If we consider a period of five years, as you say, I think there's a lot that has happened in those five years — part of which, actually, regarded myself, because I was in a different position five years ago. Then, at the start of 2023, I became team principal. But at the same time, I think the conditions, as you say, to become successful — they started definitely from farther before me. You know, at least five years ago — investments that were planned. We got quite a lot of infrastructure that came to fruition in 2023. This is the result of investments that were approved before me being team principal. So there’s a legacy, there’s a contribution that comes from the people that were in position before me. And the development from a people point of view — recruitment — I think you’re right in saying that it’s perhaps a five-year journey that then started to accelerate as of 2023.

There were some further changes during 2023, organisational changes, especially in the technical area. I think this allowed our talent to be further exploited. But if I think about the talent that was available at McLaren, especially in the technical team — this definitely goes back a few years to create such a strong technical department. So it's a long journey in Formula 1. And even if you are there to capitalise, there's definitely contributions, investments, and credit to several people. And in my case, I take the opportunity to recognise these — to the people that were in my position, or in some other position, before me.