McLaren disappoints in 2023. The car lacks a lot of speed and the upgrades in Baku do not seem to be a big step forward. Andrea Stella states that it is a huge limitation that the British team does not have its own wind tunnel and indicates that some major upgrades are still to come.
In Bahrain, it became clear that McLaren were in bad shape, which the team itself had expected. From Baku, the McLaren would be the car they had actually wanted to start the season with. In Baku, this seemed to be a good step forward, as both drivers reached Q3. In Miami, however, McLaren was back to square one. Indeed, here both drivers were eliminated in Q1.
Stella explains McLaren performance
Currently, McLaren still uses Toyota's old wind tunnel in Cologne and Mclaren team boss Stella argues that this is a major disadvantage. "If you have to build a new car for completely new rules, it is a limitation that you don't have your own wind tunnel," says the team boss in an interview with Auto, Motor und Sport. This year, McLaren hopes to use their new, own wind tunnel.
Stella on upgrades for McLaren
In Baku, McLaren took the first major upgrade of the season and, speaking to the German medium, Stella says it will not be the only major upgrade of the season. "We are going for at least two more. That's the plan at the moment. That depends on how we develop, whether we make the top of the midfield and whether there is a chance to get closer to the top four."
B-version for McLaren?
Stella also seems to hint at a B-version of the MCL60 in the interview. "You may call it a B-version if the car changes its appearance considerably. This will happen, for example, when we introduce new side pods on the car. This is the feature that distinguishes these cars."