McLaren, in Baku for the rescue
Just like 2022, 2023 has also reserved an uphill start for McLaren. For the second season running, the Woking-based team got their car wrong. However, it has also shown ability to react to the current World Cup: the hope is that even under Andrea Stella’s management, the papaya team will be able to go back with the current. The updates planned in Baku should be a first serious corrective to the performance of the MCL60, after the first changes seen in Melbourne. A choice that Woking made with determination and courage: bringing so many developments into a Sprint weekend, with Parc Fermé already on Friday afternoon, might not allow for a correct evaluation of the updates.
Stella’s words
The Italian team principal, however, was not worried: “If there is no misbehavior, it will be relatively easy. This is because in modern Formula 1 data is available and aerodynamic performance can be read through precise measurements. I have to say that so far the car has proven to correlate well with developmentthat’s why we decided to introduce the updates even if it’s a Sprint weekend“.
“We know that in Baku we will start another phase of the World Championship with some updates on the car. They won’t be season-changing developments, but they are the first step in what we hope will be multiple updates. In the future we will be able to fight for the points zone on merit and not just in eventful races (such as that of Melbourne, nda)”.
Melbourne positive
In the Australian Grand Prix McLaren returned to the points with both cars. Landau Norris was author of a solid race and Oscar Plates he is confirming the good things he had shown in the minor categories. The young Australian, in his native Melbourne, was just outside the points zone, but he was among the drivers who benefited the most from the chaos of the restart, gaining three positions and his first four points as an F1 driver.
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