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McLaren boss Andrea Stella has set the deadline for its first major upgrade in 2024 and expects to introduce it within the first six to seven races. The Woking-based squad admitted during the car launch that the team had not ticked off all boxes during the winter and there was still some work left to be done.
The team used a somewhat similar strategy last season when it started the season with an uncompetitive car. Both McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, struggled to get the best results early in the season because the car was just not good. The upgrades introduced by the team in Austria jumpstarted the season for the team.
From Silverstone onwards, McLaren had the car capable of fighting for podiums and it propelled the team to finish the season in P4 in the championship. The team is targeting something similar in 2024 as well, although the jump to the front might not be as pronounced.
As quoted by Motorsport.com, Stella laid down the timeline for the team's upgrade plan. They would bring something minor to Australia, but the major upgrade will come in the first third of the season. He said:
"We have some minor things that will come for Australia and hopefully for Japan, but they will be [delivering] a few milliseconds. And then hopefully, within the first third of the season, we will have a major upgrade. It's going to be for around race six or seven."
McLaren boss expands on the strengths and weaknesses of the car
Andrea Stella also touched on the strengths and weaknesses of the car and explained an often-cited phenomenon of the race in Jeddah.
McLaren was ruthlessly fast in the fast-speed sections and was even quicker than the Red Bull of Max Verstappen. This was one of the reasons why Lando Norris was able to hold back Lewis Hamilton in the second half of the race.
Stella touched on how the fast-speed sections were a strength for the team, while the long straights and long corners were where a lot of time was lost. He said, via the aforementioned source:
"I think there is margin to understand the car a little bit more. In Jeddah we had a slightly different approach to set-up between the two cars. And I think we see some interesting positives and negatives. This optimisation is maybe worth like one tenth, it's not like you can find any magic."
He added:
"We know the car well, apart from this little difference between the two cars that we will review. I think it's very much a matter of upgrades, or adaptation to the track in relation to the track characteristics."
McLaren is not a podium contender at this stage of the season. The car is just not at the level where it can compete for that. Having said that, if the improvements from the major upgrade give the team that jump, we could be looking at a scenario where that is the case.
