I wanted to do an analysis of how much impact the new upgrades have influenced McLaren’s performance this weekend, but last year’s qualifying session was very wet and the times / telemetry of that session wouldn’t allow us to make a fair comparison year on year… Nevertheless, we may have a few pieces of data that could help.
A couple of comments first:
- The biggest takeaway from qualifying for me was the parity between both drivers, something sorely missed last season… The fact that Piastri was so close to Lando’s time is not only very positive for the team in terms of result, but it also should boost Oscar’s confidence on himself, as well as the team’s confidence on him.
- For year against year comparison, we would have to use FP2, which is the most representative session (both run in the dry), of course engine modes, fuel loads and the fact that we have also a different tire construction this year will have an effect in the results.
FP2 - 2022 (white) vs FP2 - 2023 (orange):
Not what I would have expected in some aspects, starting with the lap times… The McLaren was faster in 2022 FP2 compared to 2023 FP2, looking at where that time is made/lost would indicate that Lando was pushing a bit harder during FP2 of last year compared to this one (let’s keep in mind that they were doing several correlation tests during FP2 this weekend)… Most of the time lost vs previous year is in turns 1 and 2 (which are flat out) and in the final corner.
But we can see from the telemetry that there is a clear reduction in drag (run from T4 to T5 - Wellington Straight) as well as the time gained in the Hangar Straight, which interestingly places the MCL60 faster when they reach Club (T14)… In addition, and more importantly, the MCL60 carries more speed through the slow corners at the Loop, Brooklands and a very good exit from Chapel.
Even when the times don’t show it, based on the drag reduction and higher minimum corner speed in tricky corners, the MCL60 is clearly ahead of its predecessor.
Since we don’t have good data from Qualifying, which is where it matters… Instead of comparing it to previous year, I thought a look at how they are doing versus their target competitors (Aston Martin, Mercedes and Ferrari… The group we all want them to belong to) might be a good alternative:
Mclaren vs Aston Martin:
The McLaren is a whooping 7 tenths faster than the Aston during qualifying, Lando did his final lap a little later than Alonso and there is definitely an impact from track evolution on the times, but we can still find out some traits:
A) The Mclaren carries more speed through the corners: Lando manages to gain most of the time against Alonso in the slow corners, in Village, Luffield, the exit of Chappel as well as in Club.
B) The McLaren still loses in the straights: I thought initially that the losses in the straights were due to a more efficient DRS from the Aston, but looking at the telemetry for their fastest laps without DRS, the Aston still has an edge, but even when drag is still involved I still believe that is more of a deployment strategy issue than just drag, since the delta presents itself closer to the 300km/h mark than 250km/h (where we should start to see the impact of drag), the fact that it shows itself around 290km/h may seem to indicate that there is more influence from deployment than there is from drag (without negating that there is still some more drag that needs to be shed.
Mclaren vs Ferrari:
Lando was capable to beat the Ferrari’s by 2 tenths, where did the time came from:
A) Mclaren still showing more minimum speed in key corners clawing back the time lost in the straights in T4, T5, the exit of Chapel and beating the Ferrari in Stowe and Club… It is the cornering and braking performance of the MCL60 that gave them an edge
B) As with Aston, the MCL60 loses most of it’s time in the straights, but interestingly the time lost there is less than a tenth on either straight.
McLaren vs Mercedes:
A little bit of a different picture, in this case there isn’t a clear advantage for McLaren in regards to slow speed (albeit in the beginning of the lap) and there is still more top speed from Mercedes compared to McLaren, although the delta is smaller compared to the others.
Lando beats Hamilton in the final sector, with an impressive exit out of Chapel and Stowe, gaining additional time at Club.
From the above, McLaren clearly still has a deficit in top speed vs their (hopefully new) direct rivals, but a mix of strong low corner speed and traction gives it the edge and helps it overcome it… Still a lot of work for the Team, but there is definitely improvement in key aspects of the car… In a few more races, with more time for the team to dial in the new setup and hopefully more representative qualifying sessions, we should be able to get a more clear picture.
