Max Verstappen, from the Netherlands, piloting for Red Bull Racing RB20, is leading the pack at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. Andrea Stella, team principal of McLaren, believes that Red Bull’s decision to prioritize resources for the 2024 season early on has given the impression that their Formula 1 rivals are falling behind. McLaren, which made significant progress last year, was expected to be the closest competitor to Red Bull. However, it is Ferrari that has stood out as the main rival, with five podiums and a one-two finish in Australia, currently comfortably in second place in the championship. However, McLaren is still in the fight and took advantage of a less than ideal weekend for Ferrari in Shanghai, securing second place with Lando Norris.
Stella is confident that McLaren is on an upward trajectory, despite Red Bull’s focus on developing the RB20 car, which may give the impression that they have regressed. When asked if McLaren can establish itself as the second team, Stella stated that their development in recent years has been more significant than any other team. He believes that Red Bull did not progress much last year, as they were heavily invested in the initial work for the innovative design of their car. Developing such a car requires months of redesign. Stella acknowledges that McLaren may have lost some ground in the short term, but this is because they made significant gains while Red Bull was not actively developing their car. Stella emphasizes the importance of looking at long-term progress, as McLaren is on a strong trajectory. He believes that if they continue their development over the next 12 months, they have the potential to catch up to Red Bull.
Stella a mentionné précédemment au Japon que McLaren doit reproduire le développement de la saison dernière pour rivaliser de manière constante avec Ferrari. Il réitère que l’équipe introduira des améliorations sur la voiture MCL38 lors de la prochaine course à Miami, dans le but de réduire la petite différence entre eux et Ferrari. Stella reconnaît que le développement est une bataille constante en Formule 1, les équipes cherchant toujours à améliorer leurs voitures. Il souligne que d’autres équipes, comme Sauber et Haas, ont déjà introduit des améliorations et ont vu une amélioration de leurs performances. Stella met l’accent sur l’importance de l’amélioration continue et affirme que McLaren est pleinement engagée dans cette approche.
