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F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia - Final Practice

McLaren F1 boss outlines current 'main weakness' of the MCL60

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella recently claimed that the aerodynamic efficiency of the MCL60 has been a major detriment to McLaren's performance in the first two races of the season.

The British team have struggled since the start of the 2023 season with zero points on the board after two races.

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During the first race itself, Oscar Piastri had to retire his car and his teammate Lando Norris had to pit six times, making him the final one to cross the checkered flag.

This has been quite a disappointment for the team, especially after their performances last season and the expectations they had from the MCL60. Andrea Stella, the team principal, told Motorsport that the car is facing a lot of aerodynamic issues.

"In terms of weaknesses of the car, we talk about aerodynamic efficiency. Not necessarily this means the car is draggy. Simply the ratio between downforce and drag is not as high as we would like. That's the main weakness," Stella said.
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Stella also mentioned that the team was more competitive in Saudi Arabia than in Bahrain. According to him, this was because the tarmac provides more grip in Jeddah, which reduced the car's dependence on aerodynamic load.


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McLaren boss hopeful about Baku upgrades

McLaren have been focused on the upgrade package that they are planning to introduce in Baku for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Stella revealed that though the numbers look promising, it will only put the team on 5th or 6th instead of the P4 that the team is aiming for.

The 52-year-old revealed that the team is working on upgrades ahead of the race in Baku, which will hopefully make them much more competitive than they are right now.

"When it comes to the Baku upgrade, we do see the numbers, which are promising. It's hopefully from sixth, it will allow us to be fifth."
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"It's not enough yet to achieve our objective for the season, which is to become a top-four car. This will require the Baku upgrade and we require another couple of upgrades following Baku on which we are working."

McLaren are hoping to gain traction throughout the 2023 season. They have also implemented an organizational change within the team, following which they announced the departure of James Key, their now-former technical director.

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Edited by
Arshit Garg
 
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