McLaren Formula 1 boss Andrea Stella says he and the rest of his team are still “trying to process” their achievement in winning the 2024 World Championship.
The team secured its first title since 1998 with victory for Lando Norris in Abu Dhabi, finishing the season 14 points clear of rivals Ferrari.
Stella stayed on with the race team to oversee Tuesday’s test before returning to the Woking factory.
“It’s been a mix of thoughts and emotions,” he told this writer before heading home. “I think we are all trying to process more rationally what we have achieved.
“I’ve spent definitely a few hours trying to reply to all the messages for which I’m really very grateful to everyone that wanted to express their congratulations and say well done to myself and to the team.
“And also I’ve spent as much time as possible speaking to as many people as possible in the team.
“I think we are all processing that it’s a phenomenal achievement. And if anything, from what I hear from our people, especially at the factory, it’s even better than what they thought.
“I have to say that the celebrations in the garage were the best celebrations in the garage that I’ve had in my career, even if I had thankfully many opportunities to celebrate when I was at Ferrari.
“And this one at McLaren was the most intense, the most spontaneous, the most energetic celebrations in the garage that that I could witness and be part of.”
Regarding further events back at the factory he added: “Definitely, there’s a few appointments planned to celebrate together with the team.
“But while we celebrate, we have already started our conversations that if we want to keep this kind of success, we have to do better in the future. What we have done so far may not be enough for the level of F1 nowadays.”
On Saturday evening before the race Stella acknowledged that Abu Dhabi had been the site of the low point of his career, when Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso lost the title at the final round due to a wrong strategy call.
On race day last weekend Alonso reminded Stella about their shared defeat.
“I told him before the race what Abu Dhabi took from our hands in 2010,” Alonso said after the flag. “And hopefully today, it give something back to you. And it did. So happy for him, he deserves it.”
Asked about the 2010 disappointment Stella agreed that he now had a better feeling about the track.
“I’m certainly a bit more in peace with Abu Dhabi now,” he said. “While Abu Dhabi 2010 remains the most painful experience for me professionally in F1, at the same time over time I think myself and Fernando have become more and more proud of what we have achieved in the 2010 season.
“And I think that experience has given us the toughness, the learning, and all those qualities that you sometimes learn only when you lose something, rather than winning.
“And I think in what we are today, even in this year’s achievement in 2024 there is some of the toughness, the learning, the pride that we took from that experience.
“And definitely I have to say, this is a very personal note, but in any of my personal, professional and personal achievements, there will always be something coming from my collaboration with Fernando.
“Because working with him, you take so much away. You take so much that makes you better, that this becomes a resource in your future experience, even when you don’t work with Fernando anymore.”
Adam Cooper F1 