McLaren team boss Andrea Stella accuses his rivals of attempting to cast his team in a negative light. The Italian views all allegations from opponents about the controversial rear wing of the MCL38 as a ‘psychological warfare attempt’. However, according to Stella, there is also a silver lining to all the fuss.
Earlier in the season, McLaren came under scrutiny due to their flexible rear wing. The competition of the British racing team found the wing on the MCL38 to be extremely flexible, and questioned whether the wing was not functioning as a sort of ‘mini-DRS’. Therefore, McLaren adjusted the rear wing for the Grands Prix in Singapore and Austin. Team boss Stella, however, is tired of his team’s rivals trying to constantly cast McLaren in a negative light.
“Of course, we have read the many reactions in the media, opinions that mainly came from our opponents, not necessarily from journalists. Certain articles seemed to be a means to spread the opinion of some of our opponents on the circuit,” Stella tells Motorsport.com. According to the team boss, the rear wings have always complied with the technical regulations and the parts have passed every FIA test.
Psychological Warfare
The Italian team boss was therefore quite irritated about all the fuss about the rear wings. “I saw many articles that were used as a tool by teams that wanted to put Lando Norris‘s team, McLaren, in a bad light,” explains Stella. “It’s an attempt at psychological warfare aimed at weakening the opponent, but from our side, the facts were very clear.”
Meanwhile, McLaren is leading in the constructors’ championship. The team therefore sees the attempts of the competition to put the team in a bad light as a kind of compliment. “In the end, this story has made us as a team even stronger, because if the opponents get so distracted by thinking about our technical solutions, that’s good news for us. It means they’re losing their compass a bit,” concludes Stella.
