By Lenny Sundahl
It was with a mix of reverence for the past and optimism for the future that McLaren unveiled its 2023 challenger, the MCL60, and its new team lineup, with rookie Oscar Piastri joining Lando Norris and Andrea Stella being promoted to team principal after the departure of Andreas Seidl to Sauber in the offseason.
photo: McLaren Racing
The mood at Woking was as bright as the colors on the car, largely an evolution from last year’s MCL36, with the most notable changes being a more aggressive shape to the sidepods, allowing for extra vents along the side of the airbox. Stella is cautiously optimistic in the immediate term, stating in the team press release that “we have work to do as we enter the 2023 season, but everyone in the team is totally focused and committed to making our 60th anniversary year a special one.” Both live and in the press release he highlighted the continued collaboration with Mercedes-AMG, now in its third season.
At the launch he also remarked that there were “good developments in the pipeline,” while McLaren CEO Zak Brown said “a lot of our technology projects are coming to fruition now. We can see them and touch them, and we’ll be active with the wind tunnel and simulation and things of that nature later on this year.”
photo: McLaren Racing
The driver lineup is easily the most notable change to the team. After a well-publicized and litigated contract-go-round across multiple racing series, 2021 Formula 2 champion Oscar Piastri will make his racing debut for McLaren after spending last season as a reserve driver for Alpine. In the team press release he said “I’ve settled in well and I’m now fully focused on getting out on track in Bahrain,” and at the event simply said “I’m just happy to be on the grid finally.”
Despite being just 18 months older, Lando Norris will have four years’ racing experience on Piastri going into this season. He called it “a long journey. It feels like it’s gone extremely quickly, it doesn’t feel like it’s been five years.” In the accompanying press release, Norris noted that the new car regulations adopted last season have been “a good challenge[…] and I feel that I’m in a positive position to keep on improving as a driver.”
photo: McLaren Racing
In the press release, Stella noted of the drivers that Piastri “has quickly integrated in the team and gained much respect, thanks to his humility, bright intellect, and dedication. It’s also been great to resume the work with Lando, who is now showing the qualities of a leader as he supports the journey of the team.”
The livery is mostly unchanged, but shipping company DP Global joins the team on the side of the nose, and Google Android is now replaced by Google Chrome on the airbox for 2023.
In keeping with the anniversary celebrations, the first portion of the launch ceremony was devoted to team founder Bruce McLaren, with testimonials from Mario Andretti, who won the 1967 12 Hours of Sebring with McLaren; Howden Ganley, credited as the third ever employee for McLaren as a mechanic before embarking on his own racing career; and Ray “Tex” Rowe, employee #8, who worked at McLaren for 55 years until his retirement in 2020. Zak Brown declared that there will be celebrations throughout the year across all McLaren’s involved series.
