Did McLaren's 'aero update' from France come to fruition on Friday?

McLaren scored very strongly on Friday in Hungary. During the first free practice, Lando Norris was already close to the top three and during the second session, the Brit even took the second fastest time. It seems that the aerodynamic update that was already installed in France is doing its job.

McLaren looks competitive

Norris was even slightly faster than Carlos Sainz during FP2, while the Ferrari's are the favourites for the weekend in Hungary. The practice sessions don't say much yet, as it's not known what programmes the different teams are trying out, but McLaren's speed was promising. With rain also likely to be heavy tomorrow, there seem to be many chances for McLaren to be at the forefront this weekend.

McLaren engineer Andrea Stella is satisfied with Friday's results and hints that the aerodynamic package worked well in Budapest: "It was a productive Friday at the Hungaroring. Overall, the car seems to have good potential. It ran without any problems, which allowed us to run a busy programme. We focused on better understanding the new aerodynamic package we introduced in France and understanding the tyres."

McLaren's aerodynamic upgrade bears fruit

That the new aerodynamic package paid off in Hungary is perhaps not surprising. Due to the curvy nature of the Hungaroring and the lack of long straights and high top speeds, the cars' level of downforce is maximised. For McLaren, this is a good moment to gather data. McLaren will be busy with that data tonight: "We were able to try all three tyre compounds and now have enough data to dive into this evening. We will now focus on preparing for qualifying and the race. It looks like we will have interesting weather tomorrow."