McLaren's target for 2020: "Maintain our position and close the gap a bit" to top

McLaren technical director James Key has revealed the team's "medium-term target" is to maintain its position of fourth in the constructors' championship while closing the gap on top three teams, with the team breaking 100 points last season for the first time in half a decade.

In Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz, McLaren have one of the most promising young line-ups on the grid as the Woking-based side continues its climb back to the top of the grid.

Sainz's maiden podium in Brazil, albeit a fortunate one, felt like a sign of things to come as the papaya orange cars are seen closer to the front of the pack seemingly every week.

“I think you have to have a target to work to so you can figure out where to be, one of those is to get to the front but that’s a huge step, to get that in a year would be very welcome but it is a massive step,” Key, who had a hand in designing the McLaren MCL35 after joining the team at the start of last year, was quoted by Crash.net.

“I think ultimately there were certain targets based around what we learned from last year and the weaknesses we wanted to address."

Speaking more on those targets, Key prefers to remain rather than to get carried away only to be let down later.

“The medium-term target is to maintain our position and hopefully close the gap a bit and then build on that, so if we can be in that place then we can achieve that target, the realistic target that we have.”