McLaren had a sluggish start to the 2024 season until a podium lifted the spirit of the team in Melbourne. This brought hope in Lando Norris, who was far from happy with the MCL38, to go out there and compete against the likes of Red Bull and Ferrari. However, Norris reckoned the importance of taking one step at a time and targeting Ferrari initially, the second-fastest team at the moment, before setting their sight on Red Bull, the only team to beat under the current regulations.
“You always want to be closer to Red Bull and fighting. But Ferrari are always quick, they have improved in certain places like high-speed,” said the McLaren driver, as per Junaid Samodien on X.
“It’s clearly still Red Bull ahead but if we can battle with Ferrari a bit more… If we can be there and [be] challenging when we get a chance, happy. Things to work on, but we are in a good place.”, Norris added.
Ferrari progressed brilliantly over the winter to turn their SF-24 into a formidable car. They were statistically the third-fastest team last season, but coming into 2024, they worked their way out with improved race pace, less tire degradation, and better straight-line speed to be right behind the defending champions. The 1-2 finish at Albert Park worked perfectly in their favor to keep the motivation high and provide a much-needed impetus.
Therefore, Norris made sense when he talked about taking care of Ferrari first before chasing Red Bull. Nonetheless, McLaren also improved to be in third place after their P3, and P4 finish in Australia, and this makes them the only team apart from Red Bull that can be a threat to the Italian outfit.
Where does McLaren stand in 2024?
Even though McLaren had a far better start to their season in 2024 compared to last year, they are not where they wanted to be. After their brilliant recovery in 2023, expectations were high for the Papaya team, which they failed to meet due to developmental delays on the MCL38.
This put the Woking-based team in jeopardy as experts opined Norris and Piastri to play catch-up once again. According to the team principal Andrea Stella, upgrade parts for the Papaya car were not ready in due time, and this hampered their progress.
Despite this, the undercooked car has looked decent to lead the midfield against Mercedes and Aston Martin, and at times be a threat to Red Bull and Ferrari in the championship.
However, Stella arrived with a ray of hope as McLaren are all set to have a major upgrade by Miami or Imola. Through the insights gained by the Woking-based team, they are working to bring optimal upgrades that would suit their car in various circuits throughout the season.
