McLaren underestimated: 'We should have thought more about it'

McLaren hoped to be in contention for Grand Prix victories prior to the season. In the first half of the season, however, the British team finished in the sub-top of the driver's field, so they had to adjust their ambitions. According to James Key, more could have been achieved.

With the new regulations this race year, McLaren seemed to have the perfect car to compete at the front, but this proved to be a bigger challenge than expected. The technical director of McLaren explains in conversation with The Race that the team made a number of mistakes.

He mentions the sensitivity to high track temperatures and excessive drag. "The high track temperatures thing we could have just done a better job," Key says. "And thought more about it and set more ambitious targets. So that’s not, with hindsight, difficult to understand."

"The straightline speed thing was a surprise because there are methods of predicting where you should be but of course, it’s always relative. And with such fresh regulations and the biofuel content in the engine, all sorts of things, to actually predict that is incredibly difficult."

McLaren has to put up with Alpine

While Ferrari and Red Bull Racing are performing too well for McLaren for the time being, the team still has two racing teams ahead of it. Mercedes managed to stay close to the Italians and Alpine also managed to score more points than McLaren. However, the difference between the last two teams is only four points.