McLaren and Ferrari are similair, claims Andrea Stella
Reflecting on the differences between Ferrari and McLaren, the Woking-based outfit's team boss Andrea Stella has revealed that there are "less difference than one might think."
Andrea Stella graduated in aerospace engineering at La Sapienza University in Rome. After completing a PhD in mechanical engineering with an experimental study on fluid dynamics of flames, he began his career at Ferrari in 2000 as performance engineer for the test team.
Two years later, he became performance engineer for Michael Schumacher and then Kimi Räikkönen when the Espoo-born driver joined the Scuderia in 2007. He was then promoted to become the Finn driver's race engineer in 2009 before fulfilling the same role with Fernando Alonso between 2010 and 2014.
Stella left Ferrari in 2015 to join McLaren, taking on the role of head of race operations, moving to Performance Director in 2018 and racing director in 2019. In the latter role, he formed a triumvirate with James Key as technical director and Piers Thynne as production director, all under team principal Andreas Seidl. As part of a restructuring, Stella was promoted to team boss at the start of the 2023 F1 season.
Speaking on Pirelli's new vodcast, the Box Box Box, Stella was asked about Enzo Ferrari’s possible reaction to a former Ferrari employee leading McLaren.
“After 15 years at Ferrari, I think his first reaction would probably be disappointment. He would say ‘What is he doing there?’ On the other hand, I think and hope that secondly, he would be a little proud that someone who grew up at Ferrari learned what I have learned and was then able to contribute to the growth of another team, which would be the reason why he would be disappointed.
"I believe he would be proud that Ferrari is such a great school that someone could go elsewhere and make a contribution. I think he would be divided between these two emotions.”
Pushed on to explain the differences between McLaren and Ferrari, Stella said: “They are less different than one might think. The way you work to extract speed from the car, the logistics, the technical aspects, are all very similar to each other.
“It’s a good feeling. Our approach doesn’t change. We’ll continue to stay grounded and will try to extract more performance from the car, because we want to stay in this privileged position. If we don’t improve, others will overtake us.”
McLaren currently find themselves in a very strong position in Formula One. The Woking-based outfit struggled to secure strong result for long years, but they have recently achieved an upturn in form. After an impressive string of results in 2023, they are now leading the Constructors' championship and are on the way to clinch their first teams' title since 1998.
Reflecting on McLaren's current form, Stella added: “I would say it’s almost unexpected. Twelve months ago, I would never have thought I’d be talking about fighting for titles. However, this is the result of the work of a great team.
"Everyone at McLaren has done an incredible and high-quality job, ensuring that speed in the car allows us to fight for podiums and victories. Over the course of a season, this puts the team in a position to think about the championship, and that’s special.”
