Stella reflects on McLaren's bold tyre gamble in Montreal

McLaren left the Canadian Grand Prix empty‑handed after a bold but ultimately costly decision to start both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri on Intermediate tyres while most rivals committed to slicks.

Light drizzle on the grid prompted the gamble, but with the track already relatively dry and no further rain arriving, the strategy quickly unravelled and set the tone for a difficult afternoon.

Norris briefly made the most of the Intermediates, launching into the lead at Turn 1, while Piastri also gained ground. But both drivers were forced to pit almost immediately — Piastri at the end of lap one, Norris shortly after — dropping them out of the top ten. From there, the race only became more challenging.

Piastri locked up while battling Ollie Bearman and slid into the side of Alex Albon’s Williams. He required a new front wing and received a 10‑second penalty, ending any realistic chance of scoring points. Norris later needed a second stop after running wide and eventually retired with a suspected gearbox issue.

After the race, Team Principal Andrea Stella summarised the weekend with honesty and clarity. He said: “It’s been a Sprint event weekend of two halves. We were competitive in qualifying and the sprint, but the race didn’t go our way.”

He explained the reasoning behind the tyre gamble: “We opted for intermediates five minutes before the start because the track was greasy and it was still raining; unfortunately, the rain stopped as soon as the tyres went on, the track dried quickly, and two extra formation laps took away any advantage.”

Stella then detailed the issues that affected both drivers: “With Lando we faced a car issue, had to stop to clean the radiators, and then suffered a terminal gearbox problem.

"On Oscar’s side, the collision with Albon damaged the car and led to a penalty, and even in free air we struggled to generate the tyre temperatures needed for strong race pace.”

Despite the setbacks, Stella emphasised the importance of resilience: “This is racing, and on difficult days you show character and learn the qualities that make you a champion. We’re grateful for the support, we’ll regroup and go again in Monaco.”