Christian Horner says McLaren’s F1 success comes with a price — intense scrutiny and rising expectations

McLaren’s blistering pace in the 2025 Formula 1 season has reignited age-old paddock debates — not about legality, but about envy cloaked as curiosity. With five wins out of six races and a commanding 1-2 finish in Miami, the spotlight is firmly on the Woking-based team, and according to Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, that attention comes with the territory.“Of course in Formula 1 there are always going to be questions that are raised,” Horner acknowledged, suggesting that the sport's elite will always be the focus of technical suspicion. But he was quick to add, “McLaren have got the car to beat at the moment, that's quite clear.”Indeed, McLaren’s mastery of tyre management has set tongues wagging, especially after Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris left the field trailing in Miami, with third-placed George Russell more than 30 seconds adrift. Whispers around McLaren's rear tyre performance — echoing last year’s vague suspicions of “tire water” trickery — have resurfaced, prompting team CEO Zak Brown to cheekily sip from a bottle labeled with “tire water” stickers post-race. It was a calculated jibe at critics, paired with a firm reminder that if there are doubts, formal protests should be made."I'm not suggesting that there's anything illegal on the car," Horner clarified. “Well done to McLaren, they were in a league of their own.”From Mercedes’ garage, the tone was one of reluctant admiration rather than skepticism. Team principal Toto Wolff openly conceded, “We’re just not good with the tires over an extended run. And McLaren shows how it's being done.” He praised McLaren’s ability to maintain pace without overheating their tyres, calling it “totally legit” and attributing the breakthrough to development that began in Austria two years ago.Wolff further credited Brown, team principal Andrea Stella, and chief designer Rob Marshall as “good people with integrity,” reinforcing the idea that McLaren’s rise is based on brilliant execution, not bending the rules.With McLaren already 105 points clear of Mercedes, the chasing pack knows the bar has been raised. But for Wolff, this is no cause for panic. “We are on it. Completely on it. So it's not like we are looking at it like Bambi in front of the headlights… we are going to definitely be able to challenge.”For now, McLaren's performance speaks louder than speculation — and the rest of the grid is playing catch-up.Also Read: Oliver Oakes resigns as Alpine F1 team boss, Flavio Briatore to take charge