McLaren has kicked off the 2024 Formula 1 season on a high note, and their strategic development plan is poised to take effect with significant upgrades set to debut in Miami.
Team principal Andrea Stella has expressed optimism regarding the forthcoming upgrades, anticipating a notable advancement for McLaren in Miami. He emphasized the potential impact of these enhancements, highlighting the team’s commitment to progress.
Currently occupying the third position in the constructors’ championship standings, McLaren has showcased promising performance in the initial five rounds of the season. Their impressive track record includes securing a pair of podium finishes with driver Lando Norris at the helm.
The effectiveness of McLaren’s development program was underscored last year when a series of upgrades introduced at the Austrian Grand Prix propelled the team forward in the competitive hierarchy.
While Stella acknowledges that replicating such a remarkable leap may be challenging, he remains hopeful that the forthcoming upgrades will yield tangible improvements.
In discussing the scope of the upcoming enhancements, Stella tempered expectations by noting that they may not match the scale of the transformative upgrades unveiled in Austria and Singapore last year.
However, he affirmed that the upgrades slated for Miami are poised to deliver a substantial performance boost for McLaren.
“This upgrade will not be as big as the tool that we delivered last year in Austria and Singapore but it should be a decent step,” Stella conveyed to the media, striking a balance between optimism and realism regarding McLaren’s prospects in Miami.
“It should be noticeable. I can’t say much more than that because otherwise, we talk about numbers that we’d like to keep confidential.
“But let’s say not as big, probably as Austria in Singapore, but noticeable if things correlate with our expectation with the wind tunnel numbers, for instance, and with the computer simulation.
“It’s always a big if because even if the hit rate of this correlation has been good over the last 12 months, there’s always possible surprises.”
The impending race in Miami presents McLaren with a chance to clinch its third podium finish in four races. Stella anticipates that the event will heavily emphasize tire performance and acceleration.
“Certainly the next one will be another interesting one from a tyre point of view,” he stated.
“Especially if in Miami we have high temperatures like we had previously, so that track becomes quite a bit rear limited; a lot of traction with low-speed corners and then acceleration.”
Nevertheless, he remains optimistic that the upgrades implemented on the car will address the challenges confronting the team in the United States.
“These upgrades will also include some attempts to improve tyre degradation, so we will try and see if we can take a step forward,” Stella elaborated.
“Considering the amount of improvement we should do to get closer to some of our competitors, I would say that we need more than one round of upgrades in terms of helping the behavior of the tyres.
“But for everything, this is kind of constant development. You never assume that that’s good enough when it comes to keeping the tyres in the right operating window.”
