"We found a few opportunities in which we can streamline the way in which we operate collectively," admits Andrea Stella.

In the eyes of some, McLaren's insistence on continuing to allow its drivers to fight one another right up until Abu Dhabi almost allowed Max Verstappen to 'steal' the title, while others feel the papaya rules were just for show and that the title victor was decided some time before.

Whatever, Andrea Stella admits that the plan almost backfired and certainly complicated the Woking team's season, and therefore heading into 2026 the approach has been streamlined.

"I can certainly say that like anything that we approach at McLaren, we go through a thorough process of review such that we can see where are the opportunities to improve," he told reporters.

"And this was the same for what we call the racing principles and the way we go racing and internal competition," he continued. "We got quite a lot of feedback already during the season last year.

"We had conversations after the season and we are having conversations pretty much as we speak now," he admitted. "And all this has led us to reaffirm fundamentally, like I said before, that the concepts of fairness, integrity, equal opportunities, sportsmanship, they are all fundamental for the team, for Lando and for Oscar. So they are reaffirmed, they are confirmed and consolidated, if anything.

"At the same time, we all acknowledge that the volume of work required, for instance, for the team and to some extent even for the drivers related to internal competition was important. Therefore, any attempt we can make to make going racing together just simpler to some extent will be welcome. It will be in reality a matter of fine-tuning because once we reviewed what we have done, in most of the cases we said that's exactly what we would still do again.

"But we found a few opportunities in which we can streamline the way in which we operate collectively. Like I said, reaffirming the fundamental principles that we have adopted in the past."

While Oscar Piastri and Zak Brown were hobnobbing with the likes of Klaus 'eat the bugs' Schwab in Davos, Lando Norris was making no attempt to hide his target for the coming season.

"It's absolutely the goal," he told reporters in London after being asked if he was aiming for a second successive title. Yes, it's absolutely, absolutely the goal.

"Winning one gives you a lot more confidence," he continued. "It's different for everyone, right? You've got to find your own way of doing things, and you have people with more confidence, people with less.

"I've never been the one to have the most confidence in myself," he admitted. "But I certainly have more of it now, that's for sure.

"I've always been a seeing-is-believing kind of guy, but that's even for myself. So I've always had to see myself on the top step, see myself winning to finally believe that I can do it. But certainly last year, I managed to realise that before I achieved it.

"Already halfway through the season, I felt like I had everything I needed. The people around me, the team, the car, and my own ability to go out and win the championship. So that first time I really had the belief in myself was last year, and it turned out to be the correct thing to have. So, that was the beautiful thing, too."

Meanwhile, the Woking outfit's chief designer, Rob Marshall was keen to play down suggestions that the strengths of the 2025 package will carry over.

There's a reset in the regulations," he said. "The cars are all new and any built-in advantages have gone, but we've still got the same people and tools doing it.

"The tools will be stretched in a different direction," he continued, "but the regulations are consistent and we go about it the same way.

"Hopefully we get similar or the same results," he added. "There's some learning, there's some elements that we know, where we've lent on other cars. But in truth, it's all new. The whole floor operation is completely different. The whole front of the car is completely different. The wings are completely different. There's little read across, but there is some inspiration from what's happened in the past."