McLaren Admits They've Failed Ahead of 2023 Season Start
During the lead up to the 2023 season, the atmosphere at McLaren has been quite subdued, which began with comments from team principal Andrea Stella at the start of 2023.
In January, Stella expressed that McLaren was not optimistic about its progress for the season and acknowledged that the start of the campaign would be challenging.
Even though the team principal shared his positivity about the second half of the season, it seems McLaren's aspirations of competing at the front of the pack will be difficult this year.
At the MCL60 launch, Lando Norris ensured that expectations were kept in check by admitting that he only anticipates "small improvements" from the team in 2023.
McLaren is currently constructing a new wind tunnel that could assist the team's development in the long run.
Nonetheless, optimising a new wind tunnel, in addition to other facilities, is a complex process. Therefore, it seems imprudent for McLaren to solely rely on this new infrastructure.
McLaren CEO Zak Brown explained to the media at the pre-season testing in Bahrain:
“We know we set some goals for development which we didn’t hit, and we felt it was better to be honest about that.
“We, like everyone, have a lot of development coming, so we are encouraged [by] what we see around the corner.
“We want to be in the top four by the end of the year. Last year was a bit disappointing.
“Our aspirations are to get back to the front. We know that will take a little bit more time.”
The team seems to have put their confidence in the planned upgrades for later in the season, which does not bode well for the MCL60's foundation.
Considering that other teams are also introducing advancements, it remains uncertain whether McLaren can recover concerning the rest of the field.