McLaren pulled off one of the greatest turnarounds in F1 history. After a dismal first half of the season, scepticism ran high. But Team Principal Andrea Stella saw potential in the upgraded MCL60, and his bold prediction of a resurgence proved prophetic.
Like Jordan’s 1998 and McLaren’s own 2009 comebacks, Andrea and his team defied expectations. But turnaround requires understanding the problem first. Enter Andrea, the ‘secret weapon’! His keen analysis laid the foundation for success.
Lewis Hamilton’s post-Silverstone praise fuelled the fire. He described the revamped MCL60 as a ‘rocket ship’, aligning with his own vision for Mercedes’ development. Aerodynamic upgrades and an overall downforce boost propelled the car forward, putting Mercedes and Ferrari on notice. Even the dominant Max Verstappen felt the heat.
From a meagre 17 points before Austria, McLaren went on a scoring frenzy: 12, 30, 28, 16, 8, 4, 24, 33, 47, 23, 14, 26, 2, and 18. A staggering 285 points in just 14 races.
Was this a one-off performance, or the start of something truly remarkable and will this form continue in 2024? Join us as we delve deeper into McLaren’s remarkable journey, with exclusive insights from Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing, himself. Prepare to be surprised, and even inspired.
Last year’s second half was a massive improvement for the team, what do you feel about your prospects this season?
Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing: We’re excited about this season, the men and women at the MTC have been working really hard in the off-season to continue the upward trajectory that we were on, and we can’t wait to see what the MCL38 will bring on track this year. We aim to consistently push for podiums this year and feel confident we can deliver that for our fans.
How has the association with DP World added value to Team Papaya?
We have some great partners at McLaren who all contribute to the team and performance in their own way. The first year of our partnership with DP World has exceeded our expectations, they provide a really tangible service, helping us move our racing team around the world in the most efficient way.
One great example is that last season, we worked closely with DP World to achieve an F1 first by testing more sustainable freight logistics between the races in Austin and Las Vegas.
We’re excited about building on that success this year and will continue to push boundaries.
What, in your view, are the three most important ingredients for a Formula One Championship-winning team?
First and foremost, it’s the people within a team that drive success, whether that is in our commercial team or our pit crew. At McLaren Racing, we know that our people are our biggest asset.
We have a high-performance, no-blame culture, which fosters innovation and allows everyone to do their best work. The collaboration, enthusiasm and commitment to each other that our team demonstrates every day is the driving force behind our continued success.
Of course, our drivers are an integral part of the team, you can’t have a championship-winning team without championship-winning drivers, and with Lando and Oscar, the youngest and most exciting driver line-up on the grid, I believe we have just that.
Oscar delivered an incredibly impressive rookie season, and 2023 was Lando’s most successful season in Formula One, so we are certainly on the right trajectory.
Both of our drivers have signed multi-year extensions with us, clearly demonstrating their trust in our ability to deliver for them. This season I know both will be up there and battling at the top of the grid, performing at their best and I’m excited to see what we can achieve together.
My final ingredient would be our incredible partners; we couldn’t go racing without their support. We have the best partner network in sports, including world-leading brands such as DP World, Google, Dell and Cisco – none of which are just stickers on our car.
All our partners are thoughtfully integrated into the business and are crucial to our high-performance mission, both on track or off track. We partner with brands who, like us, value innovation, excellence and a focus on high performance to help us on our journey back to the front of the grid.
