In the high-octane world of Formula 1, championships are often won by the finest of margins—a tenth of a second in qualifying, a daring overtake into turn one, or the reliability of a gearbox. But conversely, championships can be lost in a singular, heart-stopping moment of madness. Yesterday, at the 2025 Qatar Grand Prix, we didn’t just witness a mistake; we witnessed a total implosion. McLaren, the team that has dominated the latter half of this season with the fastest car on the grid, seemingly did everything in their power to throw away the Drivers’ Championship, handing a crucial victory to their arch-rival, Max Verstappen.
As the dust settles in Lusail and the paddock packs up for the season finale in Abu Dhabi, the atmosphere within the Woking-based team must be nothing short of funereal. The question on every fan’s lips, from the grandstands to the living rooms, is simple: How did they manage to bottle this?
The Defining Moment: Lap 7 Madness
The catastrophe unfolded early, specifically on Lap 7. The race was still finding its rhythm when Nico Hülkenberg and Pierre Gasly collided, triggering a Safety Car. In modern Formula 1 strategy, this is the “golden ticket”—a chance to pit with significantly less time loss relative to the field. It was the beginning of the pit window; tires were ready to be changed. It was the obvious, textbook call.
Every major team reacted instantly. The pit lane became a flurry of activity as drivers dove in to capitalize on the neutralized race pace. Every team, that is, except McLaren.
In a baffling display of indecision, McLaren left both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri out on the track. They drove past the pit entry, tires wearing, while Max Verstappen, snapping at their heels, took the free stop. It was a move that instantly doomed their race. When the Safety Car pitted and racing resumed, the pack had bunched up. The gaps Norris and Piastri had worked to build were erased, but unlike their rivals, they still had to make a mandatory pit stop under green flag conditions.
The math was brutal and unforgiving. By not pitting under the Safety Car, McLaren effectively gifted roughly 10 to 15 seconds of race time to Red Bull. Max Verstappen, who has been driving the wheels off a clearly inferior car compared to the MCL38, accepted the gift with open arms. He cycled to the lead effortlessly once the McLarens finally pitted, cruising to a victory that shouldn’t have been his.
The “Papaya Rules” Paralysis
What makes this error even more egregious is the underlying philosophy that seems to be crippling McLaren’s strategic agility: the infamous “Papaya Rules.” The team prides itself on fairness, on treating both drivers equally to avoid internal rifts. However, in the heat of a title battle, this desire for equality has mutated into a strategic straightjacket.
When the Safety Car was deployed, McLaren faced a split-second decision. If they were unsure about the tire life or the strategy, the logical move—the “Championship winning” move—would have been to split the cars. Pit Oscar, leave Lando out, or vice versa. Hedge your bets. Ensure that at least one car is on the optimal strategy to cover Max Verstappen.
Instead, paralyzed by the fear of favoring one driver over the other, they did nothing. They kept both drivers on the exact same, doomed strategy. By trying to be fair to both, they ruined the race for both. This rigid adherence to equality is justifiable in the midfield, but when you are fighting a predator like Max Verstappen for a World Championship, it is practically negligent. It signals a team that is not yet ready to be ruthless, and in F1, ruthlessness wins titles.
The Excuses Don’t Wash
Post-race, McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella attempted to quell the firestorm with an explanation that felt more like a deflection. He offered three main reasons for the decision, none of which hold up under scrutiny.
First, he claimed they didn’t expect everyone else to pit. This is a baffling admission for a top-tier team. It was the pit window; the tire degradation in Qatar is notoriously high. Of course, the field would pit. To assume otherwise suggests a fundamental disconnect from the race unfolding in front of them.
Second, Stella mentioned wanting “flexibility.” The logic was that by staying out, they weren’t locked into a strategy like the others. But flexibility is useless if it costs you 20 seconds of race time. You cannot be “flexible” when you are slowly dropping back through the field because you missed the optimal window.
Third, and perhaps most damning, was the arrogance regarding their car’s pace. McLaren believed they were fast enough to simply open up a pit stop window over Max Verstappen under green flag conditions later in the race. This hubris is staggering. Yes, the McLaren is fast, but to expect to pull a 20+ second gap on Max Verstappen—on fresh hard tires—in just two-thirds of a race distance is delusional. It underestimates the reigning champion and overestimates their own operational competence.
The Pressure Cooker Effect
This incident is not an isolated one; it is part of a worrying trend. From the double disqualification in Las Vegas to this strategic fumble in Qatar, McLaren is showing cracks. They are a team that has forgotten how to win championships, suddenly thrust into a position where they must.
Contrast this with Red Bull. Despite having a slower car in the latter stages of 2025, the operation remains sharp. Max Verstappen makes virtually no mistakes. When a sliver of opportunity presents itself, Red Bull grabs it with both hands. McLaren, conversely, seems terrified of the moment.
The psychological impact of this result cannot be overstated. Lando Norris now heads to Abu Dhabi with his lead slashed to just 12 points. Oscar Piastri is 16 points back. The momentum has swung violently. Max Verstappen, who has been on the ropes, now has the scent of blood. He has been here before, famously in 2021. He knows how to handle the suffocating pressure of a title decider. Do Lando Norris and the McLaren pit wall?
The Final Showdown
We are now set for a cinematic finale in Abu Dhabi. It is the scenario F1 owners dream of: a three-way fight for the title (mathematically), effectively boiling down to a duel between Norris and Verstappen.
But the narrative has shifted. It is no longer about whether McLaren has the fastest car—we know they do. It is about whether they have the mental fortitude to cross the line. The “Papaya Rules” need to be shelved. The indecision needs to be eradicated. If McLaren loses this championship, it won’t be because Red Bull outdeveloped them; it will be because McLaren beat themselves.
As we look toward the Yas Marina Circuit, the message to Woking is clear: Wake up. You have the car, you have the drivers, but you are currently lacking the killer instinct. If they continue to bottle it as they did in Qatar, handing victory to a rival who needs no help winning, they will go down in history not as the champions of 2025, but as the team that choked on greatness.
Abu Dhabi awaits. The pressure is at its peak. And for McLaren, there are no more safety nets left.