(Motorsports news) With a number of very successful changes to its MCL60 since Austria, McLaren has become Red Bull’s closest rival since the summer. With two podium finishes for rookie teammate Oscar Piastri, Norris has taken five of the last six races, and McLaren is benefiting from a technical reorganization led by team manager Andrea Stella. Its comeback has been consistent, which has distinguished it from Ferrari and Mercedes’s more erratic performances.
This has increased hopes that the Woking squad would challenge Red Bull and Max Verstappen in 2024. In response to a question about how likely that was, Norris said, “Maybe. Since we purchased this upgrade to Austria, I’ve been the second-highest-scoring driver on the grid, as I’ve been telling Max. We may have been the second-highest scoring squad, in my opinion, Norris remarked.
“Obviously, we’ve made tremendous progress, but even so, given that we’re against Red Bull, I think what we’ve accomplished this year is still fantastic. “We are discussing one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1 history, operating one of the most dominant vehicles, Norris added. “It’s encouraging for us, in my opinion, that we went from where we were in Bahrain to becoming close and discussing battling a Red Bull. I’m excited because we still have a lot of stuff planned for next year, Norris concluded.
“There’s no point thinking of it until next year, but I’ll be optimistic, and I believe we can do it as a team.” Although most of its new hires, including Red Bull’s Rob Marshall, will start too late to have an impact on its 2024 launch car, McLaren has other advantages, such as its new wind tunnel, which went online in July in time for the start of the 2024 car development.
The response to McLaren’s challenge is that Red Bull has such a significant advantage in 2023 that, unlike its competitors, it has been able to devote almost all of its development resources to the car for the following year. Stella thinks that although McLaren’s breakthrough in 2023 gives it a solid base from which to attack the following year, the team’s summertime development curve will be more important than the Woking team’s successful season finale.
“Where you are with next year’s car partly depends on where you are this year, because that’s the starting point for everyone,” he stated. “However, the gradient that you experience over the course of six or seven months is far more significant. It’s only going to take you so much time to work on the car next year. “The work that we are currently doing in terms of aerodynamic, mechanical development is much more important than the starting point.”
Also read: Is the F1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas likely to live up to the hype?
