McLaren shut down Lewis Hamilton claim

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has denied that the team’s upgrade in Miami performed better than expected, following a theory raised by Lewis Hamilton.

F1 returned from a five-week break last weekend as the sport headed to Miami for round four of the season.

McLaren enjoyed a competitive showing, claiming victory in the sprint race before securing a double podium in the grand prix.

While most teams introduced significant upgrades at the event, Hamilton pointed to McLaren’s developments, stating he had heard the performance gain was “worth much more than they anticipated”.

Stella, however, has denied that it is the case.

“He was suggesting that we got more than expected?” he said. “I would like to say yes, but the answer is no.

“Pretty much what we measure in the data is consistent with what we were expecting from the development tools. 

“So I would say that we are in line with our expectations.”

McLaren has fallen behind Mercedes this year and is facing an uphill battle in its quest to defend its double title success from 2025.

As it bids to do so, Stell asserted more parts are on the way.

“If anything, the number of components we took here, quantity-wise, is less than Ferrari, and there are a few more that will come in the coming races.

“But in terms of what we obtained for these components, that’s pretty much in line with expectation.”