'When we saw how the Racing Point was designed, it seemed completely out of reach'

Last season, McLaren finished third in the battle for the constructors' title. It beat Racing Point, Renault and Ferrari, who had similar or even better material throughout the season. However, this victory comes at a price.

Due to new regulations to bring the field closer together, this third place gives McLaren less time in the wind tunnel compared to the aforementioned teams. According to team boss Andreas Seidl this is not a big problem and they were not prepared to sacrifice their third place.

"We know the steps between the different rankings, but I don't think these steps make a huge difference," the German is quoted by Motorsport.com. Third place was something he would have absolutely signed up for prior to the season. Especially given Ferrari's speed in 2019 and "when we saw Racing Point in Barcelona and understood how the car was designed, that car seemed completely out of reach too."

The team that finished fifth in 2020 also gets 100 per cent of the development time in the wind tunnel for 2021. For every position above or below that, 2.5 percent is added or subtracted. So by finishing third, McLaren has five per cent less time in the wind tunnel than they might have originally expected.