McLaren dampen expectations at launch of latest F1 car

At a time when expectations should be surging for Aussie Oscar Piastri, his Formula 1 team slammed on the brakes.

Oscar Piastri and Zak Brown. Photos: AFP

Over the back half of the 2023 season, McLaren emerged as a major player when it comes to snatching Formula 1 podiums.

While Red Bull romped off into the sunset in a record-breaking campaign, McLaren’s dynamic youngsters Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris shared nine podiums in the second half of the year and Piastri took out the sprint race in Qatar.

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So one would expect plenty of optimism from the British team as it launched its car for 2024, right? Well, no.

Rather than optimism or excitement, the key word coming out of the Woking outfit as it launched its brand new MCL38 machine was the boring and decidedly cautious “realistic”.

At a time when other teams are talking up their prospects for the new season, McLaren chief executive Zak Brown was noticeably pumping the brakes.

McLaren proved it could compete for podiums over the back half of last season. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

“It’s awesome to be able to launch our 2024 competitor, the MCL38, at Silverstone today,” he said on Thursday (AEDT).

“It’s great to see our new car in its 2024 livery on track and see the hard work and dedication of the team come together.

“The fantastic thing about this sport is how competitive it is and therefore we must remain realistic as every team will have made progress in the offseason.

“The true test of whether we’ve made steps in the right direction will be qualifying in Bahrain.

“We’re all excited to go racing again, but we know there’s a long season ahead of us and a lot of work still to do to ensure we build on the progress we made throughout 2023.”

The team believes it is far advanced on last year’s cars, including Piastri’s No. 81 from 2023. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

Piastri and Norris both got some time in the new car this week, running a maximum of 200km permitted at a very wet Silverstone track.

Young Australian Piastri was at least a little more excited than Brown. A little.

“First time back in the car, loved being back on track,” he said on McLaren’s X page.

“Obviously a bit hard to get a read on what the car is like, it’s been a typically wet and cold and soggy day at Silverstone.

“All the signs were in the right direction, now even more keen to get out on the track in Bahrain.”

Seemingly echoing the thoughts of all the team, one fan wrote of Piastri: “He seems less than enthusiastic.”

Part of the issue might be the fact McLaren was miles behind schedule to start last year’s campaign, so some caution is understandable.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has quickly talked down expectations. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP)

Twelve months on, however, the team is far more advanced than that disappointing start, as Norris told the Formula 1 website after his first brief foray in the new car.

“Compared to the last few years, I think we’re in a much better position,” he said.

Yet the team’s principal Andrea Stella was very much singing from the Brown hymn sheet when discussing hopes for 2024, stating they were yet to address “all the areas” with the MCL38.

“The team are excited to present the MCL38 today and to see it on track for the first time,” he said.

“Going into this year, we look to build on the momentum of last season, but are realistic in the knowledge that every team will have made progress and found competitiveness for their 2024 cars.

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“We now have everything in place from an infrastructure, people and culture perspective so we continue to push forward and build on the work done to get us back to the front of the grid.

“Before we hit the track for competitive sessions, we have a lot of work to do, including putting the MCL38 through its paces during the Bahrain pre-season test.

“There are a number of innovations on the car, but not all the areas we want to address have been completed for our launch-spec car.

“Those areas now become the focus of our in-season development, which is already in progress.”

Piastri and Norris can only hope the team can make up that ground as soon as possible and not leave their run until the midway point once more.