2024 Mclaren Formula 1 Team

[MrGapes]

I think a point glossed over about the last stint is the outlap was compromised...Lando was really wrestling the car to get ahead of Max and to stay ahead of George for the first 1-2 laps of that stint... having several opposite lock moments on the first few laps of these Pirelli's takes tenths off your stint... by the last laps they were already worried about graining on the rears... In contrast to Max he was able to bring it in more gently..

[mwillems]

It's simple really, and Max said it really well after losing to Lando in Miami. When you have the best car on track, it often doesn't matter how lucky / unlucky you get.

Opportunities were there for the win today, even with the unlucky safety car timing. If the car was the best on track, they would have taken it by pure pace instead of relying on good fortune.

Who thinks Mclaren have the best car?

"Fastest" in F1 is quite circumstantial right now. It depends on the circuit, the weather and what the drivers had for breakfast. No one has a clear lead over any other team.

Will this car turn out to be the fastest over the season? Possibly. Since China we have gained more points than any other team and finished no lower than second, but this is as much down to the two drivers. If Red Bull had a perfectly average second driver who happened to like the way the Red Bull drives, I suspect this would not be the case.

Since China RB have gained 106 Points, Ferrari gained 101 points and Mclaren 116 points. This is very close and it could swing either way based on luck and conditions. What would be fair to say, is that since we haven't finished lower than 2nd in 5 races, that at present we are comfortably the second fastest car and being the second fastest car at every race with the occasional win can still see us be the fastest car over a season.

But that is a long way away and with plenty of other upgrades to come.

[BMMR61]

The team were pretty flawless - you can't plan your race around certain drivers who should have their time in F1 called over. A typically tricky Montreal and both our drivers were magnificent, Lando's drive to seize the race in the space of about 10 minutes before the first safety car was jaw-dropping. Any slower during this burst and he would have been first to pit under the safety car and controlled the rest of the race. The team will have learned a few things about tyres and setup from the changing fortunes during the race. McLaren need to keep banking solid performances built around good setups throughout the weekend. I refer here to Ferrari who dropped the ball completely. Were their's and Mercedes' performance this weekend merely outliers? We could be looking over our shoulder if Mercedes weren't flattered by Montreal's circuit and conditions.

No I don't think we have the fastest car, I don't think any team should try to make that claim.

[Darth-Piekus]

Do you think we should have tried to get to the pits and bolt new mediums or softs and then charge at Max for the last 10 laps?

[geogate]

I think it certainly the case that Mclaren need to be able to bring their tyres into the window in a controlled way to be fast.

[Macafangrskg]

It is imperative for McLaren for the next 2 races to catch up to the second place to Ferrari but not overtake them in WC due to the July reset of the Aero .We need the extra time in aero and sim work for 25 car. All the teams will pour all resources from 1 of January to the new specs 26 cars

[FittingMechanics]

Do you think we should have tried to get to the pits and bolt new mediums or softs and then charge at Max for the last 10 laps?

There were no mediums left. Softs were too risky.

[Macklaren]

Do you think we should have tried to get to the pits and bolt new mediums or softs and then charge at Max for the last 10 laps?

The team thought about it and offered it to Lando but they decided not to do it because they would have lost the place to George. But I guess they should have anticipated both Mercs doing it and tried it with Oscar at least.

I think consistently running in the front will teach the team to be more aggressive as well with strategy, which they can do with a winnable car. Just like their strategy is now targeted at covering Max rather than just settling for P2/3.

[bauc]

Great race, we had our chances, Lando overtook both VER and RUS on the track for the LEAD, which is a big thing and a great confidence boost. PIA was on point as well, but this time SC and other shenanigans were against us.

We have a great chance to turn this into a superb season for us.

[PapayaFan481]

Does anyone know why Piastri couldn't keep up with Norris even when Norris was flying on Inters? Different setup or because of skill/experience stuff?

They were trading fastest lap times at one point, so I don't think Piastri had any trouble keeping up. Once they were running 2nd and 3rd Piastri was more concerned with the Mercs and it is always the case that driving defensively loses time.

Hind-sight is a brilliant thing, but I wonder whether we'd have had a double podium if Lando had hung back to keep Oscar in DRS range as a defence against the Mercs.

[Ben1980]

Does anyone know why Piastri couldn't keep up with Norris even when Norris was flying on Inters? Different setup or because of skill/experience stuff?

They were trading fastest lap times at one point, so I don't think Piastri had any trouble keeping up. Once they were running 2nd and 3rd Piastri was more concerned with the Mercs and it is always the case that driving defensively loses time.

Hind-sight is a brilliant thing, but I wonder whether we'd have had a double podium if Lando had hung back to keep Oscar in DRS range as a defence against the Mercs.

I think if we had tried to drag Oscar along, we would have had as much chance as coming 4th and 5th as 2nd and 3rd.

[LionsHeart]

Does anyone know why Piastri couldn't keep up with Norris even when Norris was flying on Inters? Different setup or because of skill/experience stuff?

They were trading fastest lap times at one point, so I don't think Piastri had any trouble keeping up. Once they were running 2nd and 3rd Piastri was more concerned with the Mercs and it is always the case that driving defensively loses time.

Hind-sight is a brilliant thing, but I wonder whether we'd have had a double podium if Lando had hung back to keep Oscar in DRS range as a defence against the Mercs.

I think if we had tried to drag Oscar along, we would have had as much chance as coming 4th and 5th as 2nd and 3rd.

That's right. I thought about it too. Which option is better, to give the opportunity for a straight slipstream and open DRS, or to try to move forward to fight with Max? Overtaking is more possible here than in Singapore. It was a difficult moment. Considering that at the very end of the race Oscar could not match Lando's pace, I think Lando should have moved forward right away. On the other hand, we need to try to create a DRS train so that both Mercedes could not overtake. At first everything seemed to work out, but then Oscar himself lost pace, and then let two cars pass.

[Seerix]

Curious Lando was saying in the post race interviews they did all they could, but the SC and slick pace were the reason for not winning.
However, later during the press conference he changed attitude and mentioned they could have won if the decision making and communication was better/faster.

Looking at the replay he had like 2-3s to pit on the first safety car lap. He managed to ask "pit or not" on the radio, but Will started rambling "if the rain... if you think... stay out". Lando was not keen on pitting for inters at that point (it was basically dry already with rain coming soon) and was only convinced after everyone behind him pitted for inters.

On the other hand with Oscar they had more time. Tom said "We expect rain, do you want to pit for fresh inters?". Oscar: "Uhh, yes."

There definitely was an opportunity for Lando to pit right away, but they were not really clear on which tyre to put on and also it would have been a very short call, so maybe pitstop would have been slow if they did not have tyres in the pitlane etc.
IMO the tyre choice was on team this time as they saw the rain coming, but the driver only saw almost dry track.

I am liking Oscar's defense. He does not let people pass easily. Regarding driver preference. At one point towards the end, Tom even asked him if he could challenge VER, but Oscar only said he needs to focus on RUS behind. So it seems the team was willing to give him a go if he felt up for it.

Anyway, very nice race. Cool to see McL fighting at the top and I hope to see more of it.

[bluechris]

To me MCLaren has the best driver pairing atm. They respect each other and they both have the team on top.
Very good

[bauc]

To me MCLaren has the best driver pairing atm. They respect each other and they both have the team on top.
Very good

If Perez keeps his ''great performance'' and if Ferrari are hit & miss, we can fight for P1 in constructors by the end of the season.