Ever since the departure of Lewis Hamilton from their team over a decade ago, McLaren has been going through one of the most difficult phases in their F1 history. The team has won only one Grand Prix in the last decade, with little to no sign of challenging for the championship. However, as reminded in an update on X by user ‘Dan- EngineMode11,’ all that could change owing to two key signings.
In the middle of the 2023 season, the Woking-based team signed Rob Marshall (ex-Red Bull Chief Engineering Officer). The British engineer is now working with McLaren as their Technical Director to further improve their challenge for the 2024 season after a dramatic rise in performance late in the 2023 season.
Ex-Ferrari Head of Vehicle Concept David Sanchez has also come onboard the McLaren ship in the same role as Marshall to bolster the McLaren technical lineup. The third key addition to the Technical Director role at McLaren is Cypriot engineer Peter Prodromou.
Marshall worked at Red Bull for over a decade and collaborated with Adrian Newey on many projects, learning valuable insights from arguably the greatest car designer in the history of F1. Meanwhile, Sanchez, who was at Ferrari since 2012, became a pivotal figure in the team after his contribution led to the team regaining some of its form in 2017.
After signing for McLaren in the middle of the 2023 season, both engineers went on lengthy gardening leaves from their teams. However, all that is over now, and it is time for them to jump back into action. With two vastly experienced men spearheading their technical department, McLaren would be hoping to further build on their performances in the back end of the 2023 season.
Is McLaren ready to challenge for the title?
With Rob Marshall being the most experienced member of the three prominent men joining the Technical Team at McLaren, all eyes will be on how he bolsters the team’s performances. Having worked with Red Bull during all of their successful seasons, the Briton brings immense experience with him to a team that is currently on an upward trajectory in F1.
Late last season, the Woking team showed an incredible resurgence to quickly become the second-fastest team on the grid, with Oscar Piastri even beating Max Verstappen fair and square in the Qatar GP’s Sprint race.
Given the same, Horner recently praised McLaren for their increasing challenge while also admitting to them gaining a valuable asset in the form of Marshall joining their team. “There were times they were very, very competitive – our closest competitor at times during the second half of the season – and they’ve strengthened their team. Rob will for sure be an asset.”
Away from Marshall’s addition and their resurgence, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri’s form will be the final key to McLaren potentially opening the lock to the championship. Should the duo continue to drive the way they did in 2023, the McLaren team will be hard to stop once racing begins in 2024.
