McLaren boss Andrea Stella has insisted the team is not fixated on results but more on the processes as it continues the strive to return to Formula 1 title contention.
Stella’s appointment in late 2022 has revived McLaren’s fortunes as it has gone from a perennial midfield fixture to a regular challenger at the front since last summer.
McLaren has built on the momentum it gathered in the last campaign to deliver Lando Norris’ maiden win in Miami, while he was also in the mix at Imola and Canada.
The Woking-based squad has accrued more points than its rivals in the previous three rounds to close to 40 points behind second-placed Ferrari in the championship.
But while Stella acknowledges the vast progress McLaren continues to make, he has stressed that the team cannot afford to let the improved results be a distraction.
“We look at the classification, we see we are in a good position, we look at the plot of the points, we see we are in a good gradient,” he said last weekend in Montreal.
“But the second after we do that, we forget and we think about what do we need to do now to be good at the next race?
“What do we do now to be good at the following races, delivering projects?
“So we don’t really focus on outcome and results. We focus more on the process and on being always performance-focused, let’s say, and delivery of projects.
“I think in Formula 1, if you focus too much on results, you may be easily carried away.”
Oscar Piastri’s run to second in Monaco prompted Stella to reveal that its latest developments had all but cured the team’s previous slow-speed cornering weakness.
But Stella has warned that the British outfit is still not in a position to beat Red Bull on a consistent basis, despite accepting that the gap at the sharp end has shrunk.
Asked whether McLaren can be in a position to win at each round now, the Italian responded: “We think that we could be a challenger for podiums.
“If we look at the current situation from a competitiveness point of view, there are a few teams in a narrow band in terms of lap time, separated by a few tenths of a second.
“Track layout makes a difference. Drivers can make a difference. I think we saw [Charles] Leclerc was in phenomenal shape in Monaco. So there are many variables.
“What’s important is just to try and be as prepared as possible and maximise the package. And then we see what the results will be.”
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