The McLaren boss wants the team to learn from their recent rich vein form.
Andrea Stella believes it is “important” to recognize McLaren’s progress in 2023 with a late rise to fourth in the constructors’ championship. The entry-spec MCL60 wasn’t very fast, but the Austrian and Singapore upgrade packages made the car second fastest behind Red Bull. After a slow start to the year, McLaren found themselves sliding down the table as Aston Martin started the season strongly, but a reversal of fortune has seen the Woking team now finish stronger than Aston as the season draws to a close.
At the Japanese GP, McLaren collected two-three 33 points, Fernando Alonso’s eighth place only four. The efforts of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastr held the team to just 49 points after six innings. Despite the improvement in form, team manager Stella wants the team not to take their eyes off the ball.
Stella admonishes McLaren “In the week of the Qatar Grand Prix, it’s important to acknowledge how far we’ve come in the season,” explained Stella. “Achieving P2 and P3 in Japan was not an easy task, but it was made possible by the quality of the work of the teams in the factory and at the [Suzuka] track. “We are more determined than ever to continue our development. the goal is to be consistent in the battle at the top of the pitch.
“The Qatar race is quite new to F1 as we only visited Lusail International Circuit once in 2021. However, this is the first time we’ve brought a new generation of cars here, so everyone will be looking to make the most of the practice and the Sprint format will only add to that challenge.
