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McLaren was the dominant force of 2025. But in Austin, the papaya-orange MCL39 was suddenly too slow for Max Verstappen. The reason? A technical domino effect that began with Saturday's sprint crash. Ted Kravitz from Sky Sports reveals the story.
The sprint crash destroyed more than carbon
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both crashed in the sprint. That cost eight certain points. But the real damage was invisible to cameras.
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McLaren lost all representative data on two crucial factors. Tire degradation over long runs. And more importantly: wear on the plank underneath the car. In Formula 1, data is king. Without data, McLaren was suddenly blind.
The fear of disqualification
The plank rules are merciless. If the wooden plate is too worn at race end, disqualification automatically follows. Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc know how painful that is.
Without data on how the rough COTA track would attack the plank, engineers faced an impossible choice. Maximum performance with disqualification risk. Or play it safe with speed loss.
The dilemma:
● Run low = maximum downforce but disqualification risk
● Run high = safe but slow
● No data = gambling with millions at stake
● Competitors had sprint data and perfect setup
Performance sacrificed for safety
McLaren chose safety. The team preventively raised the ride height of both cars. "Raise the car up a little bit," as Kravitz explained.
That technical compromise had direct consequences on track. Significant downforce loss. Worse balance in Sector 1's fast corners. A car that "left performance on the table."
Red Bull and Ferrari had run a full sprint. They had perfect data and could optimize their setup. McLaren had to gamble and lost.
The invisible price of sprint format
The Austin defeat wasn't about an inferior car. McLaren was forced into a suboptimal technical compromise due to data shortage.
Pierre Waché, Red Bull's technical director, spoke about "getting it spot on." He meant the perfect setup. McLaren completely lacked that luxury.
This incident reveals a fundamental problem with sprint races. A Saturday crash can undermine Sunday's full potential. Not through physical damage, but through information loss.
One crash's domino effect
Eight points lost in the sprint. Performance sacrificed in the race. Verstappen won with authority while McLaren watched helplessly.
The real cost? Immeasurable. A missed chance to decide the title fight. Confidence showing cracks. Momentum shifting to Red Bull.
McLaren had Austin's fastest car. But speed means nothing if you don't dare use it.
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