Stella warns McLaren staff of ‘poison biscuits’

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella is wary rivals will attempt to divide and disrupt his team following its recent success, encouraging his employees to refuse metaphorical “poison biscuits.”

McLaren sealed its first constructors’ title in 26 years at Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which was also its first title of any kind since Lewis Hamilton won his first championship with the team in 2008.

Despite the long wait, McLaren’s return to the front accelerated dramatically in the second half of this season, with a major car upgrade at this year’s Miami Grand Prix thrusting Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri into contention for victories.

Internally, Stella had used the term “poison biscuits” to warn his team against external disruption or complacency, and he believes the message will be crucial for McLaren’s sustained success.

“Refusing the poison biscuits is one of the fundamental elements of checking and validating that the culture that we have created is not only words but exists in real life,” Stella explained.

“We will always have poison biscuits dropped in our camp. We will always have poison biscuits dropped and with an attempt to create division, to break the cohesion that we have in the team.

“But we talk every day that we are not going to pick the poison biscuits. It would be very naive, it would be very arrogant to think that because we have achieved something now, now we are perfect, now we can relax, now we can think that everything is due just because we are world champions.

“There’s nothing new; I think the best philosophy is that you start like if you had lost and that’s what we’re going to do in preparation for next season.”

Stella became team principal ahead of the 2023 season and, within several months, overhauled the team’s technical department.

However, he credits McLaren’s success with the unlocking of the potential of its staff and ensuring, along with CEO Zak Brown, that suggestions from individuals were listened to and actioned upon.

“The unlocking of the potential of the people, first of all, is not only my contribution, it’s the contribution of the management and this is extremely important because you cannot do anything if you are a one-man show,” he said.

“Even if you are team principal, you need the support of your CEO, you need the support of the chairman, you need the support of the shareholders — that we need to get aligned, otherwise you don’t create a culture.

“Zak walks the factory with me very, very often and we have several conversations. Ultimately is the accumulation of these numerous conversations that change the culture, build the trust in an organisation.

“You see that as a team principal, as a CEO, you are one of us, and thanks to our conversation we build the way we want to be as a group. And then we become the guarantee that the way we want to be as a group will be implemented — that’s where you really make a difference as a team principal or a CEO.

“Not because you bring new staff but because what we agree all together will be guaranteed. We are responsible to make sure that this is brought to life.”