If we cast our minds back to the launch of the MCL60, the whole team was trying to manage the expectations of both press and fans, clearly outlining that the 2023 car would need further upgrades and was not starting the season quite where they wanted it to be.
This, combined with the Woking outfit’s disastrous start at the opening round in Bahrain, saw them immediately on the back foot amongst their upper midfield competition. The first major updates arrived in time for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were equipped with a rear wing and a new floor.
The next phase of McLaren’s upgrades has now arrived, commencing with a new package arriving in time for the Austrian Grand Prix, then more over the next two races in Britain and Hungary. With McLaren now sitting 6th in the constructors’ standings, 27 points adrift of their biggest rivals of the last few seasons – Alpine – the team will depend on these new parts to turn their season around.
Answering questions on the subject at the Canadian Grand Prix, Team Principal Andrea Stella explained the upgrades had to be spread over the three races due to the complexity of designing and producing new aerodynamic parts.
“Not a strategic decision, it’s just as early as we could design and then produce them. Some parts require more time to be designed or evolved and some parts were quicker, so as early as possible and this is the earliest.”
According to Stella, “nearly every aerodynamic part” on the car will be changed as part of what he called “fundamental” redesign that has required work on parts under the bodywork also. The team expect “a few tenths of a second of lap time improvement” over the three races the updates are introduced.
It was clear to the team immediately that a huge change was required to revive their season and make the MCL60 a somewhat competitive car.
“At the start of the season, we realised that the car needed a fundamental redesign, so this redesign is actually interesting.
“I would say pretty much every single aerodynamic part [will change] – that’s why the upgrades will be spread over the course of a few races.
“We had to redesign even some parts under the bodywork. That’s also why it took some time to be in condition to deliver these upgrades. I would say pretty much the entire car.”
The Italian explained that 50% of the upgrades would arrive in time for Austria, with the rest being spread evenly over the following two Grand Prix. Pressed for detail on exactly what would be coming on the car for this weekend’s race at the Red Bull Ring, he replied: “I’d rather leave the surprise, but it will be noticeable.”
“Ultimately, for us, it’s a milestone in terms of possibly turning around the season. Not only thanks to what we bring to Austria, but also tends to work will follow in the next races. So our focus more than the characteristics of the track is now on the car itself. So even if we have only one session, hopefully we’ll be able to validate the new package and from there, move on to a more competitive situation.”
With Norris having achieved good results in Austria in the past, McLaren will be looking for a repeat of that this weekend and gather some good data on the progress of the new package across both the Sprint race and the weekend. Stella admits it’s a huge moment in McLaren’s season.
“I’m banking on this package, but across the pretty much three races in which we will introduce it, these should be a few tenths of a second – it will be noticeable from a lap time point of view.”
