THE MICHAEL SCHUMACHER EFFECT: HOW ANDREA STELLA BUILT MCLAREN'S NEW DYNASTY
Andrea Stella is the first McLaren boss this century to guide them to a championship one-two finish. Rubens Barrichello explains Stella's Schumacher-inspired success.
Andrea Stella is the only team leader this century to guide McLaren to a championship one-two finish.
After McLaren's major improvement over the last three years, fans hope Andrea Stella sticks around longer than Ron Dennis did after Lewis Hamilton's 2008 title.
When Oscar Piastri first joined McLaren, he and Lando Norris struggled to get out of Q1.
But by 2025, they were battling for the drivers’ title, with Norris winning at the last race.
Stella wasn't eager to become McLaren's team boss. It took a lot of convincing from CEO Zak Brown for him to take over from Andreas Seidl.
Former Ferrari driver Rubens Barrichello says he knew Stella would do great at McLaren based on his time with Michael Schumacher.
Schumacher had huge success with Ferrari, and Stella was key to his five straight championships.
Barrichello talked about his time at Ferrari on the Flow Podcast.
He said this about his work with Schumacher: They kept getting better, and Andrea Stella, who’s now the head guy, was a telemetry engineer [at Ferrari].
You have a mechanical engineer and a computer engineer, right? They download all the data and look at graphs and everything.
He was Schumacher’s engineer, right? And I watched him closely.
My guy was good, but this guy was on another level.
I pay attention and like to learn.
Often, Schumacher would finish a meeting, go somewhere else, and not call me. I’d grab my chair and sit there, waiting for someone to tell me to leave.
There was no rule saying I had to leave. So, I was like, I’m here; I’m part of this team too; I want to learn.
So this Stella guy, I hung around, and we became friends.
Barrichello added that he sees how Stella's experience with Schumacher affects his leadership at McLaren.
Stella's important role in Schumacher's Ferrari success shows what a great asset he is to McLaren now.
Schumacher built Ferrari's last title-winning dynasty in the early 2000s. Only McLaren's poor management in 2007 allowed Ferrari to win the title that year with Kimi Raikkonen.
One thing Schumacher's Ferrari and Stella's McLaren have in common is that they built the team around a few trusted people.
Schumacher wanted Ferrari to stick with Jean Todt, Ross Brawn, and Rory Byrne despite a slow start. It paid off fast.
Stella has done much the same thing at McLaren, bringing in Rob Marshall and trusting Peter Prodromou more.
Stella wants to copy Schumacher’s testing plan for next year’s regulation changes. He's sure his team will put McLaren in the best place to face 2026 and after.
FERNANDO ALONSO CONFIRMS ZERO PERFORMANCE UPGRADES FOR ASTON MARTIN BEFORE SUMMER BREAK
Fernando Alonso warns fans of zero performance upgrades for Aston Martin until autumn as cockpit vibrations ruin race pace.
Fernando Alonso doesn’t see things getting any better for Aston Martin until the back half of the season. The start of their 2026 F1 run has been downright rough.
Their fresh partnership with Honda just isn’t clicking. Both drivers can’t get out of Q1 in qualifying, and points? Forget it. After four rounds, Aston Martin and Cadillac are stuck at the bottom of the standings with zero points.
It’s not just a lack of speed, either. Alonso and Lance Stroll have been fighting nasty car vibrations all year, so bad that team boss Adrian Newey said after Australia, both drivers were worried about permanent nerve damage in their hands and feet.
Miami didn’t offer any relief. Alonso and Stroll both finished a lap down, 15th and 17th. At 44, Alonso accepts this might be the new normal for a while.
When someone asked if Canada might bring some improvement, Alonso shut it down quickly. "No. Maybe we’ll get a little better on drivability, but not on performance," he said. "We just have to stick together. It’s going to be a tough race.”
He knows these weekends will get repetitive. "We have to face the media every Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday," he said, and when a journalist apologised, Alonso just shrugged it off: "You’re just doing your job. We drive fast, but the message is the same every week."
Aston Martin doesn’t have upgrades coming until after summer break. Alonso expects Canada and Austria to look just like Miami, and keeping everyone’s frustration in check is the new challenge. Still, he figures the team is staying calm and focused on having a stronger finish to the season.
Looking further ahead, Alonso said last month he’s open to sticking around F1 after his current contract ends. The two-time world champion, who took his titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006, will be close to 450 grands prix by the end of this season.
GEORGE RUSSELL ADMITS ANTONELLI IS "EXCEPTIONALLY QUICK" BUT REFUSES TO CONCEDE TITLE
Kimi Antonelli secured his 3rd straight F1 win in Miami, leaving George Russell 43 seconds behind and 20 points down in the title race. (130 chars)
George Russell isn’t flinching. He’s not ready to let go of the story, even as Kimi Antonelli keeps grabbing headlines. Antonelli’s been tearing it up this season – three straight wins, all from pole – and it’s got people talking. Miami was rough for Russell; he finished fourth, over 43 seconds behind Antonelli. That gap isn’t just big; it’s glaring, and it’s putting some real heat on their rivalry at Mercedes.
Russell isn’t pretending things are fine, but he’s not throwing in the towel either. He gets what Antonelli’s doing and gives props where they’re deserved. “He’s a fantastic driver, and he’s been fast since day one,” Russell said. “You don’t win all those championships as a kid if you’re not quick.” He means it, but he’s also drawing a boundary. Russell still believes in himself, and he’s not giving up on the championship.
“I’ve still got confidence in myself, and I haven’t forgotten how to drive,” he said with a little smile. “It’s just a tricky patch, but we’re only four races in; there’s a lot more to come. We’ll sort things out over the next few weeks.”
That “tricky patch” doesn’t just mean some tough luck; it includes a 20-point deficit and a teammate who won’t stop rewriting history. Antonelli’s winning streak has changed the vibe at Mercedes, at least for now.
Russell knows all about momentum and how it doesn’t always stick around. “He’s got momentum right now; he’s flying,” Russell admitted. “But I’ve won championships myself, and I know momentum swings back and forth all year.” He actually doesn’t seem bothered by the points gap. “Honestly, I’m not even thinking about it,” he said.
It’s a calm answer from a guy who’s been here before, leaning on experience while Antonelli rides his hot streak. Russell keeps saying 'big picture, patience, not panic'.
“I just want to get back on top of the podium,” he said. “I had the pace for the first three races, but this weekend I was nowhere close. It could have gone very differently these last few weeks, and this weekend could’ve just been a blip. But some races in Japan and China didn’t go my way. That’s how F1 goes sometimes.”
Still, confidence doesn’t erase a 20-point gap, not if Antonelli keeps cruising. If Antonelli keeps piling up wins, Russell’s going to have to fight more than just the stopwatch. Losing to your teammate over and over starts to mess with your head. Russell began the season as the guy to beat, but the longer this keeps up, the tougher it gets to grab hold of the story again.
He’s holding firm, for now. But F1 doesn’t wait for anyone. What does Russell call “just a tricky run”? Well, if momentum doesn’t swing his way soon, it could become a whole lot more than that.
