McLaren’s 2026 Canadian Grand Prix was pretty much doomed from the start when the team decided to gamble on the intermediate tyres.
This move made the team “like idiots”, according to driver Oscar Piastri, as he spoke to Sky Sports F1 after the race.
The strategy call has sparked much debate within the paddock and amongst the fans, with some calling it an error from the moment the cars left the grid on the formation lap.
They took a chance, and it played out horribly wrong.
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The strategy call
Light rain had fallen earlier in the day on Sunday morning, leading to a dampened track.
However, with F2 and F1 Academy racing beforehand and little more rain, the support races had pretty much dried the track as the F1 race was looming.
On the reconnaissance lap to the grid, drivers were finding the track to be a little slippery due to slight dampness in some areas.
As a result, McLaren thought it was wet enough to warrant the intermediate tyres on both cars.
McLaren were the only team to do so in the top 10.
The results
Due to a car being unable to get off the line and a fault in the starting system, the race saw two extra formation laps before the start could get underway.
Even on the first formation lap, Piastri was on the radio stating that they had made an error on the tyre strategy.
This proved to be correct as Piastri was called into the pits already by the end of lap one, and team-mate Lando Norris, who had taken the lead at turn one, was called in to change tyres the following lap.
This put the drivers, who had started P3 and P4, down in P14 and P18 with a lot of work to do.
Out of place and desperate to move up the order, Piastri tried to make an ambitious move on lap 13, which saw him career into the side of Alex Albon, taking Albon out of the race and getting himself a 10-second time penalty.
Stuck in traffic for the majority of the race, Piastri only managed to make it back to P11, 2 laps down and out of the points — a result likely flattered by five DNFs and one DNS.
Norris did manage to make progress, moving up to P7 before a reliability issue saw him come back into the pits, emerging in P14 again.
He climbed back up the order again to P8 before a gearbox issue led to Norris retiring from the race altogether.
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Team take
Piastri was very clear over the radio and in his interview with Sky Sports F1 that the strategy was a mistake and made the team look “like idiots”.
However, team boss Andrea Stella still defends the decision.
“I think we always have to be a bit careful in judging decisions simply from the outcome,” he said.
He believes that had the race not had the extra formation laps, the intermediate tyres would have been the right call.
My take
I disagree with Stella’s belief and blame on the extra formation laps.
Even on the first formation lap, Piastri was saying the strategy decision was a mistake over the radio.
The pundits were also left confused by this call from McLaren, as the track was visibly dry enough for slick tyres.
Yes, if it had continued raining, maybe it would have been the right call, but that’s an if.
Whilst the McLarens weren’t the only cars to start on the intermediate tyres, to be the only team in the top 10 to make such a bold call and to do it on both cars when you’re starting P3 and P4 is just too big a risk.
If you’re going to take such a huge gamble, maybe next time split the strategy at least.
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